Throwback photos stir up laughs, memories and—for denim heads—a wealth of vintage denim inspiration. This column on Rivet asks individuals in the denim industry to take a look back and reminisce about a denim moment in time captured on film.
This week, Rivet 50 member Beau Lawrence reflects on a year-long road trip through the U.S., in which denim played a leading role. Now the founder of premium denim brand Ace Rivington, he considers jeans to be “the easy definition of cool,” and threads that philosophy into his work.
Beau Lawrence, Ace Rivington Inc. founder
Back in 1995, I left home and spent 365 days living in a VW Camper. That van took me to 36 states and six provinces—and for a 20-year-old from California traveling aimlessly, a laidback attitude and style were key.
The journey was inspired by youth, desire for adventure and “On the Road” stories from vagabonds like Jack Kerouac and troublemakers like Peter Fonda and Jack Nicholson’s characters in “Easy Rider.”
Denim certainly was a fixture in the limited clothing options I stuffed into the cabinets of my van. However, it would still be a few years before I learned of the importance the fabric would have on my life and career.
