The Spirit of SoHo
Sharing creativity and community through LifeWear
A feeling, a mindset, a way of life. SoHo is
more than a neighborhood—it’s about creative
expression, personal freedom, and the heart of
community.
SoHo gave birth to the global cultural power
that is Downtown. Its collaborative spirit has
gone beyond NYC to influence art, music, and
style everywhere. To tell this story, we
partnered with the photographer and activist,
Ryan McGinley, to highlight people who have
contributed to—and still are—SoHo’s past,
present, and future.
This fall, we’re celebrating 15 years in
America. UNIQLO introduced the concept of
LifeWear to New Yorkers in 2006 from our first
US store located on SoHo’s Broadway. Today, we
give thanks to you—Americans from every part of
the country—who have so warmly welcomed us here.
Join us as we honor the legacy and future of the
Spirit of SoHo—both online and in every UNIQLO
store across the USA.
Carlo McCormick and Tristan Hughes-Freeland
Writer and culture critic celebrated for his astute observations of the times. Rhetorical artist and model exploring social phenomena.
“Growing up downtown, SoHo always felt almost like a
no-man's land—
at night it would kind of become a playground.”
Through relentless curiosity and astute knowledge,
Carlo McCormick has made major contributions to
modern art history and pop culture criticism. A
writer, educator and curator based in downtown NYC,
his essays—defined by clarity of thought and
grounded in an understanding of the zeitgeist—have
been included in hundreds of books and catalogs. He
was senior editor of Paper magazine for over 30
years. Through his writing, the stories of NYC and
America’s creative communities are given a veracious
voice.
Tristan Hughes-Freeland, an artist & McCormick’s
son, was raised deeply connected to downtown
culture. From his earliest days, Tristan was
surrounded by a community of creativity that came to
transcend NYC and found its way around the world.
Drawing from a lifetime of memories, Tristan’s
recollections balance fondness for his home with
considered perspective: “Growing up downtown, SoHo
always felt almost like a no-man's land—at night it
would kind of become a playground.
Ryan McGinley
Photographer, artist and activist renowned in art and fashion for capturing the humanity of his subjects and the pulse of culture.
“There’s a chicness to SoHo. A little bit of street,
a little bit sophisticated.
It’s a little rough around the edges.”
Known in art and fashion for his gift for capturing
youth and humanity, Ryan McGinley’s portraits offer
a compelling glimpse into the lives of others.
Through his early work, we see the streets of his
adolescence and candid images of his generation's
lifestyle—snapshots of a rare and exhilarating time.
Since then, Ryan’s work has ranged from photography
to video, in galleries, museums, magazines and in
collaboration with brands, focusing on subjects
interacting spontaneously in joyous rebellion.
In 2000, he staged his first solo exhibit, The Kids
Are Alright, inside an abandoned SoHo warehouse.
This was his start as a photographer, and in 2003,
at 25 years old, Ryan was included in the Whitney’s
First Exposure series, making him the youngest
artist ever to have a solo show at the institution.
In addition to his creative practice, Ryan is also
an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. While now in a
chapter of career removed from his first show in
SoHo, his connection to the neighborhood endures.
Jeffrey Deitch
Curator and art dealer whose landmark gallery helped define SoHo’s early scene and contemporary art as it is today.
Visionary art dealer Jeffrey Deitch has a long and
storied history of finding and promoting
undiscovered talents. Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith
Haring, and Jeff Koons are among the contemporary
and modern artists who have benefited from his
curatorial acuity.
Starting in the mid-90s, his Deitch Projects gallery
in SoHo launched names and made headlines for its
bold exhibitions. Some shows went mobile—costumed
artists put their creativity on display in Deitch’s
memorable Art Parades, twirling along the streets of
New York City with beautiful abandon. Deitch
Projects continues to shape and define contemporary
art from its location on SoHo’s Wooster Street.
Deitch has also opened a gallery in LA, where he has
served as director of the city’s famed Museum of
Contemporary Art (MoCA). On both coasts, Deitch
constantly has an eye out for the next big thing.
“This is a remarkable time for artistic innovation,
with an expanded understanding of what art can be,”
he says.
Futura and Tabatha McGurr
Graffitist, artist and designer known for his abstract spin on street art. Blogger and diarist offering a fresh take on the topics of the day.
“Early ‘80s we came down here and discovered what is the gold standard of the art world here.”
Futura holds a special status in the history of
creativity as a groundbreaker and an iconoclast.
With a body of work that paved the way for
abstraction in street art, he is widely considered
one of the pioneers of the graffiti movement, the
urban arts movement and street style. In the ‘80s,
together with the likes of Jean-Michel Basquiat and
Keith Haring, he spurred an artistic revolution. “In
the early ‘80s, we came down here and discovered
what is the gold standard of the art world.”
Tabatha grew up in NYC in the nexus of many
cultures—the art community, the emerging street
style scene, and the world of downtown. With Futura
as her father, early on she understood the magic,
and pragmatic realities, of being creative. Tabatha
began working as a blogger in high school, dabbling
in copy-editing and journalism for years before
ultimately transitioning into commercial real estate
brokerage. As a family, they’ve witnessed the
incredible evolution of NYC and how its influence
has traveled the world.
Nicola Vassell
Gallerist and art adviser breaking new ground in
SoHo’s
contemporary art scene with an experimental
approach.
“The whole effort was to stand out...It didn’t really matter who you were as long as you were delivering the goods.”
Vanguard of the contemporary art scene, Nicola
Vassell is a dealer and curator breaking new ground.
Her namesake gallery is committed to discourse that
widens the lens of the history and future of art.
Nicola came from Jamaica to New York City for a
modeling career, then joined the art world where she
has worked for nearly two decades. She takes an
experimental approach to curation and is committed
to promoting diversity and inclusion. From her
gallery in Chelsea, Vassell recalls the eclectic
parade of style that influenced her early days
downtown, “the whole effort was to stand out...It
didn’t really matter who you were as long as you
were delivering the goods.”
Artwork by Uman
Yukie Ohta
Archivist and chronicler of SoHo whose mission is to preserve the neighborhood’s iconic history for future generations.
“SoHo was a small community. People had an idea—they
gave it mass...weight...
movement...sound...it was just made for the sake of
having to make it.”
Archivist and SoHo native, Yukie Ohta celebrates the
singular spirit of her neighborhood through the SoHo
Memory Project, a nonprofit organization she founded
to preserve the history of SoHo. She has created a
space where people can contribute stories to the
collective memory of a bygone era—SoHo in the 1960s
and 1970s—when it was a tight-knit community of
artists, families, and small businesses.
Original documents, footage, and first-person
interviews are cross-referenced with locations, art,
and architecture to create an intricate web of
creative history and community. Yukie’s mission is
to capture and share this history so current
generations understand the neighborhood’s rich past
and make informed decisions in shaping its future.
“Ingenuity and a culture of cooperation transformed
a once-declining industrial neighborhood into a
thriving artists’ community. The story of SoHo is an
important legacy—and a blueprint for the future.”
*Some items featured in images will be available this Fall.