[NEWS] LEVI’S® AND QUEER BRITAIN: FROM THE LEVI’S® ARCHIVES: ICONS IN DENIM A QUEER PERSPECTIVE

This September, the Levi’s® brand is debuting a first-of-its-kind showcase of archival garments at the Queer Britain Museum. Titled as a nod to Queer Britain’s colourful community, the exhibition From the Levi’s® Archives:  Icons in Denim – A Queer Perspective draws its inspiration from the passion fans have for Levi’s®, the symbolic place Levi’s® holds among the Queer community, and the extraordinary ways that Levi’s® jeans and jackets have been personalized by them.

Celebrating a longstanding partnership between Levi’s® and Queer Britain, the exhibition hosts Levi’s® products from the Levi Strauss & Co. archives displayed together for the first time outside of the U.S. From artists to rock legends to movie stars, every facet of the queer community has donned Levi’s® in their own unique way and the curation captures their authentic self-expression. 

Queer Britain is the UK’s first and only LGBTQIA+ museum and the eleven looks compliment the work Queer Britain maintains: to preserve queer people’s stories and objects to inspire, celebrate and educate all communities about queer culture. Levi Strauss & Co., parent company of Levi’s®, has a long history of supporting and uplifting the LGBTQIA+ community and have been advocating their rights for over three decades, standing up for equality and non-discrimination. The brand’s products have been worn as symbols of protest, solidarity, and identity. 

A first for the soon-to-open South Gallery within the Queer Britain Museum, guests will be guided through the product-led timeline. All showcased products were hand selected from the Levi’s Archives, and tell stories of hope, creativity, and resilience.  

Highlights from the exhibition include:

1. Levi’s ® 501® Jeans worn by Queen frontman Freddie Mercury. 1980. 
2. Levi Strauss Signature Jeans and T-Shirt worn by Jake Gyllenhaal in multi-Oscar winning film Brokeback Mountain. 2005
3. Levi’s® ‘Empress’ Jacket, inspired by a kimono, the Levi’s® jacket was created for a DIFFA event. The denim is dyed yellow and is signed by Beauregard, Beau Black, Stephen Dunn. 1994. 
4. Levi’s® Sir Elton John Jacket, customized for and signed by Sir Elton John for a DIFFA charity sale event. April 1994. 
5. Levi’s® Protest Jacket, custom painted by artist Serge Gay, Jr. to reflect his concerns as a Black gay transgender man. 2020. 
6. Levi’s® 501® Jeans and T-Shirt owned and worn by California’s first openly gay elected official Harvey Milk. 1970s. 

The exhibition opens on Friday 29^th September for two weeks, concluding on Friday 13^th October. Selected items will move to the main gallery space for 2 months before returning to the LS&Co. Archives in the Levi’s® brand’s hometown of San Francisco. 

Address: 2 Granary Square, King’s Cross, London, N1C 4BH

Opening Hours: Wednesday – Sunday 12.00-18.00