Do You Think the Estate of Roy Lichtenstein is On Board With These Nike Sneakers?

(lol the answer is no)

A heads up! There’s no voiceover to accompany this free essay for two reasons: 1. I think you really need the visuals, but also 2. I feel quite nauseous today and just don’t trust myself to get through the reading of it. If you’re on Android, I’m pretty sure you can “hey Google” to ask it to read the piece aloud, which clearly won’t be the same as hearing my dulcet tones, but might work in a pinch. And if you’re on iPhone, it seems you can ask Siri to read it (but you need to be on Safari and there may be other hoops to jump through I don’t know about).

I saw a Pop Art exhibition at MOMA what must be many years ago now – 10? 15? who knows? who wants to know? Not I – and remember how incredible Roy Lichtenstein’s work was in the flesh, so to speak.

When we think about Pop Art, the tendency, I think, is to immediately reference Andy Warhol and, y’know, he’s great an’ all – who didn’t have a replica Marilyn Monroe print in their rented college accommodation at some point? – Lichtenstein’s work really stood out to me as being about something in a way that, 10 (maybe 15) years ago, seemed really important to me at the time.

There’s been a shift that’s happened since whereby I no longer search for meaning in art – or tattoos, now that I think about it – and think it’s enough just to like something for its own sake, but back then I needed some kind of profundity in order to feel as though I was truly understanding the art piece and was, therefore, on that day in MOMA, more an intellectual than a tourist.

Anyway, Lichtenstein’s work was largely based on imitating other works of art or popular culture and parodying them, which makes it slightly ironic that, in 2024, Nike has decided to imitate him by producing a pair of runners that are kind of unmistakeably Lichtenstein in terms of their vibes while also saying nothing about the culture, his art, or where we are in terms of either of those terms today.

They’re cute – they caught my eye immediately in a sea of black, beige and (still) dusky pink – and I will admit I find the Dunk style comfortable in a way I do not find, say, a lot of the bootie styles (I’m still determinedly breaking in the Blazers I got for Christmas 2023, never let it be said that almost-40-year-old me is a quitter in the way my almost-30-year-old self was), but I also wondered at the audacity of the Nike designers, coming out with this with no mention of Lichtenstein at all (unless you count the word “retro” in the title) and, also worth noting, zero mention whatsoever of where they’re made (probably China, according to this article).

Maybe it’s not a big deal; after all, in fashion – and art, music, interiors, murals, writing – imitation is absolutely rife, and though we see, on a daily basis, people getting up in arms about the audacity of X brand (Urban Outfitters seems to be a pretty regular offender) ripping off their original work, very little ever seems to be done about it.

I’ll admit that I wouldn’t buy these Nikes, not because I think they’re ripping off Roy Lichtenstein (I do), but because I just don’t love them as much as I love these Nikes, which came out five days ago and immediately sold out, and are making me rethink a suggestion made by one of my friends that I start buying limited edition runners and reselling them on eBay.

They’re currently on StockX for $344, an almost 300% mark-up, so as business ideas go, it’s not the worst I’ve ever heard (but feels a lot like ticket touting, which is gross, so probably not something I’ll be doing).

ANYWAY! Please weigh in and let me know how you feel about imitation / copying / “inspiration”, and whether it would ever put you off buying something…

Here’s a cute pic of Miss Piggy because why not. (Hers is the only face I will forgive for having those mega lashes which are truly so ubiquitous now it has become farcical; does anyone think they look good?!)

If you, like me, have been thinking non-stop about The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives – the second season of which has not been confirmed (but I can’t imagine it’s not happening?!) – I have some extra content I’ve been consuming on the topic, that I would now like to share with you, my fellow trash TV-watchers (hashtag not all of you, but, y’know, enough!):

Jordan and McKay are two of my favourite ex-Mormons (it’s a short list, honestly; Demi from Mormon Wives is also up there), and they go into a verrrrrry detailed deep dive on the show in this YouTube video, in particular going into how, actually, this show is very Mormon indeed.

This episode of Anne Helen Petersen’s

Culture Study

podcast features Sara (no relation) Petersen of

In Pursuit of Clean Countertops

and is another deep dive into the topics and themes of Mormon Wives, along with some big questions you might have after watching.

Alyssa Grenfell is another ex-Mormon who does a lot of content around LDS rules, Mormon culture and living in Utah, and she’s done a series of reels about Mormon Wives, all of which I would recommend (unless you have, you know, other things to do).

Lastly, I have never been able to lower myself to listening to Nick Viall’s podcast but I might just have to listen to this episode… If you’ve listened, please, let me know is it worth breaking my self-imposed Viall veto?!