First ‘1621 Hoodie’ included in the collection of the National Maritime Museum
The year 1621 inspired Lukas Eleuwarin to design the clothing line 1621 as part of his streetwear brand Knowledge by Roots 400 years later. The first produced sample of his 1621 hoodie has recently been added to the collection of the National Maritime Museum.
Knowledge by Roots
With this clothing line, Eleuwarin hopes on the one hand to increase awareness about the history of the VOC and WIC. He also wants to discuss what this history means today and how that history should be told in the future. Eleuwarin consciously opted for a street-wear brand. These clothes are often worn by youth and young adults: the current generation that can make a difference in the future.
Curator Tim Streefkerk considers it important to include contemporary reflections on the past in the museum’s collection.
“With his brand and the clothing line 1621, Lukas brings together different elements from Dutch maritime history: the year refers to the murder campaign of Jan Pieterszoon Coen against the inhabitants of the Banda Islands, but 1621 is also the year in which the West India Company was founded. It is a clear example of the way in which the sometimes confrontational and painful Dutch maritime history makes people think today. Clothing is pre-eminently a means with which you as a wearer can express your identity. The choice for 1621 is significant in that context.”
The 1621 jersey is now also available in the museum shop and on Dutch Museum Gift Shop. More information about Knowledge by Roots can be found on Instagram.