Backprints — why the design is moving back onto the back

For years the chest was the most important spot on a shirt. Small logo, centred, done. Now the design is moving back to where it already was in the eighties and nineties: onto the back.

Where it comes from

Two sources. First, tour shirts — the band name small on the front, the list of cities large on the back. Second, skateboard brands, which discovered the back as a canvas because you see it while riding. Both share the same logic: the back is the largest uninterrupted surface on the body.

Why it looks better than you'd think

• From the front, the shirt stays calm. You can wear a very loud design without it getting in the way of a conversation.
• The surface is flat. On the chest, every print distorts over curves. The back is flat.
• It works in passing. A back print is seen as you walk on — not when you're standing face to face with someone.

What to look for

A large print stands or falls with what it's printed on. On thin fabric the design shows through and you can see it faintly from the front. On dense fabric it sits cleanly.

The second point is washing. Large surfaces rub against each other during the spin cycle. Wash inside out, no hotter than thirty degrees, no tumble dryer — then the print lasts as long as the shirt. Exactly how we recommend it is in our post on caring for our shirts.

The difference from mass-printed goods

Many shirts with a back print are completely blank on the front. That quickly looks like half a product. A small design on the chest that belongs with the back turns two prints into one garment.

Our shirts are built exactly like that: large design on the back, the small RØ on the front. See for yourself under All T-shirts.