On November 6th, Carhartt WIP commemorated the 50th anniversary of its iconic Carhartt WIP OG Active Jacket with Sedimental Works — a multidimensional project staged inside Tate Modern’s South Tank in London. The event was conceived as a cross-disciplinary exploration of fashion and art, tracing five decades of cultural, material, and emotional layers that have built the jacket’s enduring legacy.
A geological journey through time and design
Art directed by Thomas Subreville and his creative collective ILL-STUDIO, Sedimental Works transformed the Tate’s subterranean space into an “excavation site” of sorts — a symbolic dig through history. Rather than a nostalgic look back, the installation aimed to present the Active Jacket as a living archive: a garment that has absorbed stories of work, rebellion, and reinvention across generations.
A “continuum” is what Subreville described the project as: a compacted single surface formed of fragments of time, activity and matter that he called a “geology of meaning”. Visitors walked among sculptural columns resembling cross-sections of the earth, with each layer representing a different stage in the jacket’s evolution.
The anniversary collection
To mark the occasion, Carhartt WIP unveiled an anniversary collection reinterpreting the OG Active Jacket in new materials and finishes while preserving its timeless silhouette. The updated line includes limited-edition pieces in stone-washed denim, waxed canvas, and heavyweight twill — a nod to both industrial heritage and contemporary craftsmanship.
This capsule exemplifies Carhartt WIP’s philosophy: to balance function and form, durability and expression. It bridges the original workwear DNA of Carhartt’s 1975 design with the brand’s more refined, urban aesthetic that has defined Carhartt WIP since its founding in 1994.
Where fashion and art collide
The evening blended fashion and art into an immersive sensory experience. Live performances unfolded throughout the event, featuring a boundary-pushing lineup of musicians including cellist Abi Asisa from London’s Life is Beautiful collective, avant-garde artist Klein, Brixton-based genre-mixer Wu-Lu, and Copenhagen singer-songwriter Erika de Casier, who performed an intimate R&B set.
The interplay of light, sound, and movement mirrored the ethos of the jacket itself — adaptable, expressive, and unconfined by category.
An accompanying publication, also titled Sedimental Works, extends the concept into print. The book, featuring essays and visual works by contemporary writers such as Chris Kraus, Lynne Tillman, and Christelle Oyiri, examines how material culture accumulates meaning over time — much like the fabric of the OG Active Jacket itself.
A legacy reinvented
Since its debut in 1975, the Carhartt WIP OG Active Jacket has evolved from a utilitarian garment for American workers into a cultural icon embraced by artists, skaters, and fashion enthusiasts worldwide. Sedimental Works not only celebrated its history but also reaffirmed Carhartt WIP’s position at the crossroads of design innovation and cultural relevance.
Photography by INDIA BHARADWAJ
Photography by INDIA BHARADWAJ
