Blue-Collar Modernism: The Visual Culture of Workwear

By David Hellqvist

Forged in workshops, shipyards, and factories, workwear has evolved from uniforms of labor into something larger: a blue-collar modernism. Born of necessity and refined through use, its principles of utility, durability, and material honesty have come to influence not only how we dress, but also the objects we value, the spaces we inhabit, and the lives we aspire to lead.

From legacy and contemporary brands to the people who embody this ethos, Blue-Collar Modernism reveals a global movement rooted in restraint, uncompromising craft, and the conviction that how something is made still matters.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 3967042367
• ISBN13: 9783967042368
• Release Date: October 2026
• Publisher: Gestalten
• Length: 288 Pages