The history of the biker aesthetic After Rosalìa and Motomami, Austin Butler and Motopapi

Two days after the Italian cinema release of The Bikeriders, a film based on Danny Lyon's photo book, directed by Jeff Nichols and starring Austin Butler and Tom Hardy, we can glimpse in the scenes depicting the subcultures of late 1960s America the return of an aesthetic that was hyper-celebrated in the fashion world. Starting in 2022, with the release of Rosalìa's Motomami record and the appointment of Harley-Davidson's new creative director, Louise Goldin, leather studs, full-face helmets and the colour red fire have received a surge of interest from the fashion industry, but the world of biking had a gigantic influence on fashion long before, with Saint Laurent's Motorcycle Jacket or the evolution of style in the LGBTQ+ world. It remains that since the first notes of Rosalìa's studio album echoed in the headphones of the designers of the major fashion houses, the aesthetic has been practically rewritten. With the arrival of The Bikeriders on the big screen, we find ourselves facing its great comeback. 

Over the years, not even a designer as ingenious as Demna has managed to radically change the biker uniform by signing jackets and boots for Balenciaga in recent years - precisely because it is a uniform. Any update to that uniform has to come from those who fundamentally invented it, namely two possible brands: Schott, responsible for the iconic Perfecto, and Harley-Davidson itself, which represents the entire American biker lifestyle. As the world of vintage becomes more and more important for its inherent realness, film, fashion and music celebrate its aesthetic, bringing it back to the forefront.