What was supposed to be only a side project soon took over her world.
Back in 2012, Akiva Alpert was living in Los Angeles, trying to break into the film industry. He noticed that Urban Outfitters had launched a line of T-shirts bearing the same color as the yellow Star of David that the Nazis forced Jews to wear. Frustrated, Alpert countered with his own T-shirts—counting strong Jewish symbols and Hebrew lettering—giving birth to Akiva Stripe, the first of his many clothing labels.
Within no time, the label boasted of over 10,000 followers on Instagram at a very young age and her career took off.
Now, more than a decade later, the 34-year-old is a fashion designer whose clients include Billie Eilish and Justin Bieber. Increasingly, he is also a contemporary artist and has just commissioned his first large scale work in Mexico City.
And while Alpert’s aesthetic is decidedly streetwear, he says his deep roots in Judaism inform his designs. It’s a sensibility shaped by coming of age in Albany, Georgia, as one of 200 Jews in a city of 69,000.
“There was no one else like me. None of my friends were Jewish and I faced openly anti-Semitism from teachers and friends’ parents alike. There’s nothing worse than being singled out like this when you’re young. It was a very debilitating feeling,” Alpert said in a Zoom interview from his home in Los Angeles.
Yet, rather than holding her down, she says the experience helped strengthen her Jewish identity—which she describes as a little bit fanatical, a little bit metal, and completely spiritual.
Fashion designer and artist Akiva Alpert. (Etiquette)
By the time he matriculated at Georgia State University – where he joined the historically Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi – he was deep in the study of Kabbalah and stopped using his first name, Cameron, in favor of his middle name, Akiva. Was.
“It’s a way of paying tribute. In my opinion, Akiva was probably one of the most metallic human beings who ever lived; and an intellectual who was incredibly committed to his ideals and principles,” Alpert said. It is said that when the Romans killed him, he was laughing in their faces the whole time. It’s by far the most metal thing I’ve ever heard, and honestly, I feel very connected to it.
Rabbi Akiva was a 1st–2nd century sage, a prominent figure in the Mishnah, who was executed by the Romans after the Bar Kochba revolt.
“I realized that you can assimilate or you can learn more,” Alpert said.
From Akiva Alpert’s ‘The Violent Dance’ series (courtesy)
Although he never formally studied design or art, he explored the work of fashion designers such as Rick Owens and contemporary artists such as Daniel Arsham. But it is Virgil Abloh, the late artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s menswear collection, whom he considers his icon.
“He bridged streetwear to high fashion. He showed you could be creative without boundaries,” Alpert said.
Alpert’s style has been described as hardcore metal, 2000s nostalgia, and high fashion with bold colors, oversized T-shirts, French-terry zip hoodies, and sweatpants. Over the years, she has collaborated with designers such as Ed Hardy and singer-songwriters such as Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus, Eilish and Bieber.
Working with Eilish’s stylist was “wonderful”, Alpert said. “I’ve always admired Billie’s music as well as her personal style. I designed several pieces for her, including a bespoke oversized T-shirt adorned with thousands of Swarovski crystals, which conceptually taps into the dark-Y2k aesthetic I love.” Are.
Similarly, when it came to designing special tour pieces for Bieber, she worked with the singer’s stylist to create pieces that could be worn well during a concert, but also pop at photoshoots. The result was a number of death-metal and hardcore-inspired graphic tees, hoodies, and oversized casual wear in high-octane colorways.
He said of Eilish and Bieber, “Both incredibly kind and talented artists, and I’ve had the opportunity to create conceptual pieces for them.”
Fashion designer and artist Akiva Alpert at a recent popup event. (Etiquette)
Alpert, who lives a whirlwind life, said he feels most at home living in a hotel or an Airbnb.
“It’s hard for me to sit still. I’m most excited when I’m walking, watching and listening to music,” Alpert said.
And yet it was during the pandemic when the world stood still that Alpert was inspired to break away from fashion.
‘Better Chemistry,’ an installation by fashion designer and artist Akiva Alpert. (Etiquette)
“Better Chemicals” was the first project of Alpert’s new art studio Eliod, named for the part-angel hybrid race described in the Book of Enoch.
Vacuum-sealed and framed in metal, a 1:1 replica of his body is crisscrossed with hoses. The hoses contain a blue liquid representing oxytocin, which is sometimes referred to as the “love hormone”. As Alpert describes it, the piece seeks to show love as a purely chemical reaction in the body, and asks the audience to consider whether love alone can sustain someone. Is. Alpert described the piece as “his most epic work to date”.
“Being neurodivergent, I always interpret love and relationships in a hyper-logical way, so I thought this was a really good metaphor to explain that love and my imaginary inability to understand it,” he said. .
‘Controlled Violence’ by Akiva Alpert. (Etiquette)
He stated that he wanted to “explain the effects of love on the human body; the eventual total collapse of the physical form and human psyche; the notion that love kills slowly.
As the work premiered in Mexico City earlier this month, Alpert celebrated the first night of Passover there at Merkava, his favorite Israeli restaurant.
Looking ahead, Alpert said she is excited to bring new tools like artificial intelligence and blockchain technology to her work, whether in art or fashion.
Alpert said, “I believe in moving forward as much as possible in trying something new.” “I think fully embracing these will help me explore a whole new realm of creativity.”