Virgil Abloh: The Remix Culture of Fashion

Virgil Abloh did not just design clothes – he reshaped the face of fashion. By blending streetwear with high fashion, he disrupted an industry that had long resisted change. Similarly, Jennifer Doudna and her colleagues did not invent genetic engineering, but repurposed CRISPR from bacteria to revolutionize gene editing. Both Abloh and Doudna are innovators who broke existing codes – fashion’s rigid hierarchy and biology’s genetic blueprint – to bring about something radically new. Their work reflects a “remix culture,” where innovation comes from reinterpreting and reimagining what already exists.

    

Remix culture, typically found in the music and art industries, involves taking existing elements and reconfiguring them into something new and fresh! Abloh embraced this mindset and applied this principle in fashion, pulling from architectural principles, hip-hop, and sneaker culture to create designs that blurred the lines between luxury and everyday wear, creating designs that felt entirely new. His Off-White x Nike collaborations, for instance, reimagined iconic sneakers with subtle but striking changes, like exposed stitching, deconstructed details, and the inclusion of zip ties. These subtle modifications made well-known designs seem like something completely innovative.

In science, Doudna and her team did something similar. CRISPR was not invented from scratch – it was borrowed from a natural bacterial defense mechanism. By remixing what nature had already developed, Doudna helped transform CRISPR into a precise gene-editing tool. Just as Abloh borrowed ideas from various creative realms, Doudna and her team took inspiration from nature and transformed an existing biological process into a groundbreaking scientific tool that rewrites the genetic code.

One of Abloh’s most famous design philosophies was the “3% Rule” – the notion that a small, thoughtful modification could completely alter the meaning of an object. A zip tie on a sneaker, Helvetica quotes around a word, or shifting a logo slightly off-center were all subtle modifications that could redefine the object’s cultural significance. His work on the Off-White x Ikea collaboration further demonstrated this. By slightly altering everyday household objects with bold typography and creative design cues, he transformed mundane household furniture into high-fashion statements.

CRISPR operates on the same principle. Instead of making large-scale changes to DNA, it allows for precise, localized edits, meaning a small change can result in a huge impact. This has the potential to cure genetic diseases and reshape the future of medicine. Both Abloh’s and Doudna’s work demonstrate that innovation does not always require starting from scratch. Sometimes, it is the smallest change that can lead to the biggest transformation.

Breaking the Code: Who Controls Innovation?

Both Abloh and Doudna disrupted established power structures in their fields. Luxury fashion houses initially dismissed streetwear’s influence, just as some scientists and ethicists resisted the idea of gene editing becoming widely accessible.

Abloh faced skepticism as a Black designer entering the high fashion world with a background in architecture rather than traditional fashion education. His role as artistic director of Louis Vuitton’s menswear collection was a landmark moment, challenging long standing perceptions about who belonged in the world of luxury fashion. Similarly, Doudna encountered difficult ethical and regulatory questions regarding CRISPR: who should have the power to edit genetic material, and to what extent should this technology be allowed to progress? Both of these innovators forced their industries to confront difficult questions about access, control, and the future direction of their respective fields.

Who Gets to Remix the Future?

Abloh’s goal was never just to design clothes – it was to open doors! Through his work at Off-White and Louis Vuitton, he created space for young, diverse designers who had long been excluded from fashion’s elite circles. His “Figures of Speech” exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (one of the most beautiful and innovative fashion exhibits I have ever had the privilege of seeing!) highlighted his belief that design should be inclusive, challenging traditional boundaries of art, design, and fashion.

In the same way, CRISPR has made genetic editing more accessible, opening new possibilities for treating diseases and reshaping life as we know it. Both Abloh and Doudna understood that “breaking the code” – whether in fashion or genetics – meant democratizing innovation. They proved that by remixing what already exists, we truly can rewrite the rules and unlock new possibilities for the future!