History and Meaning of the Iconic Steal Your Face North Face Jacket

The History and Meaning Behind the Steal Your Face North Face Jacket

The Steal Your Face graphic t-shirt collaboration between Grateful Dead and The North Face is one of the most iconic and recognizable designs in music merchandise history. Featuring the iconic Steal Your Face skull logo originally created by Owsley Stanley for the Grateful Dead surrounded by roses, this design first appeared on t-shirts in the 1970s and has been a staple ever since.

The Grateful Dead Steal Your Face Skull Logo

The Steal Your Face skull logo is one of the most iconic images representing the Grateful Dead. It features a skull with a lightning bolt through it and was originally designed by the band's soundman and early patron, Owsley Stanley. Stanley, who was famous for producing LSD, wanted a symbol to represent the underground acid-rock scene in San Francisco that the Dead were part of in the 1960s.

The exact meaning and origins behind the Steal Your Face logo have become the thing of legend amongst Deadheads. Some believe the lightning bolt through the skull represents power and energy. Others interpret it as a reference to the band's early association with LSD and psychedelic culture. It's also been said that the 13-point lightning bolt stands for the 13 original colonies.

Whatever the backstory, the Steal Your Face design came to symbolize the free-wheeling Deadhead counterculture. It first appeared on the band's album artwork in the early 70s before ending up on t-shirts where it became an iconic symbol still worn today by Grateful Dead fans old and new.

The Grateful Dead Meet The North Face

In 1987, The North Face and Grateful Dead teamed up to create a special collaboration collection featuring the iconic Steal Your Face logo. This marked the first time the band partnered with a major brand to reproduce the coveted skull image.

Jerry Garcia, guitarist and singer for the Dead, was an avid outdoorsman who loved hiking and camping. This made The North Face, known for its outdoor gear and apparel, a natural fit. Both brands had strong ties to the Bay Area counterculure scene that blended music, art, activism, and nature.

The initial 1987 collection consisted of Steal Your Face graphic t-shirts and a limited edition climbing jacket. The t-shirts were an instant hit with Deadheads and the bright, bold design helped push The North Face into the mainstream.

The Steal Your Face North Face Jacket Becomes an Icon

While the Steal Your Face graphic t-shirts sold consistently well, the stand-out piece from that first collection was undoubtably the Steal Your Face climbing jacket. This puffy, shiny mountain parka printed all over with the GD skull artwork became a coveted status symbol seemingly overnight.

Though created as serious outdoor gear, the jacket gained fame as a fashion statement as musicians, artists, skaters, and even Hollywood celebrities started rocking the flashy piece. It was bold, rebellious, and screamed counterculture attitude.

Over the years, The North Face has re-released the Steal Your Face jacket in limited runs, often in collaboration with streetwear labels. In 2007, Supreme did a version that immediately sold out and became a grail piece for hypebeasts and Deadheads alike.

The Return of the Steal Your Face North Face Jacket

In 2021, The North Face revived the storied Steal Your Face jacket to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Grateful Dead's 1972 Europe Tour. This highly anticipated re-release once again flew off shelves and sparked a resurgence of Dead x TNF collaborations.

In 2022, marking what would have been Jerry Garcia's 80th birthday, The North Face dropped a full collection of gear adorned with a special white-on-black Steal Your Face logo. This Collection included the iconic puffer jacket, pullovers, tees, and beanies.

For Fall 2023, The North Face is bringing back the OG colorful Steal Your Face jacket design that started it all. This retro piece remains a coveted collector's item over 30 years after its debut.

Why the Steal Your Face North Face Jacket Remains Relevant

There are several factors that contribute to the ongoing allure and relevance of the Steal Your Face North Face jacket after all these years:

• It perfectly blends the iconic counterculure symbol with a recognizable fashion brand.
• The bold, colorful, punk-inspired style stands out and makes a statement.
• It represents a sense of nostalgia for some of the Dead's original fans.
• Younger generations are discovering and becoming fascinated by Grateful Dead lore and symbols.
• Collaborations with streetwear brands introduce it to new audiences.
• The jacket's reputation as a grail piece makes it highly collectible.
• Limited runs and anniversaries generate hype and demand.

As long as the Dead's fanbase and cultural influence remains strong, the iconic Steal Your Face jacket will continue to captivate old and new generations alike whenever it reappears.

Steal Your Face Remains Embedded in Pop Culture

Beyond just the jacket, the Steal Your Face skull logo endures as one of the most recognizable symbols across pop culture. It remains closely associated with the Grateful Dead but has also been reinterpreted and borrowed across music, fashion, art, and media.

Some examples of Steal Your Face's ongoing pop culture presence include:

• Tributes and borrowed versions of the logo used by other bands
• Pop artists like Shepard Fairey incorporating it into their work
• Appearances on t-shirts, posters, and patches in movies and TV shows
• Halloween costumes and masks based on the skull design
• Tattoos and graffiti art featuring Steal Your Face
• Knock-off merchandise and unlicensed use on apparel/headshop items

For 50+ years now the Steal Your Face skull has been fair game for reinterpretation as a classic symbol of the counterculture. The North Face jacket collaboration helped cement its iconic status and introduce the logo to a wider segment of pop culture.

The Steal Your Face North Face Jacket Stands the Test of Time

Few pieces of band merch or designer collaboration clothing can rival the enduring popularity and relevance of the Steal Your Face North Face puffer jacket. This unlikely intersection between an outdoor gear brand and a psychedelic rock band created a timeless fashion piece.

The jacket perfectly blended the counterculture attitude of the Dead with the irreverent style of 80s/90s streetwear. Decades later it still manages to be retro, nostalgic, and forward-thinking all at once.

For Deadheads, hip hop heads, and hypebeasts alike, the Steal Your Face North Face jacket is a coveted grail piece. Whenever The North Face decides to dust off this coveted design, a new generation of fans gets to discover its magic.

It's a testament to both the cultural importance of the Grateful Dead's icons and the blank-slate appeal of classic streetwear. By borrowing the Steal Your Face skull, The North Face created a jacket that feels both vintage and contemporary. That special alchemy is why this collaboration endures as a timeless classic.

FAQs

Who designed the Steal Your Face logo originally?

The Steal Your Face skull logo was originally designed in the 1960s by Owsley "Bear" Stanley, the soundman and early patron for the Grateful Dead. He wanted an icon to represent the San Francisco acid-rock scene.

What was the first Steal Your Face product collaboration?

In 1987, the first official collaboration using the Steal Your Face logo was between Grateful Dead and The North Face, who produced a collection of t-shirts and a limited edition puffer jacket.

Why did The North Face collaborate with the Dead?

Jerry Garcia loved the outdoors, so the nature-focused North Face was a natural brand for the Dead to partner with. Also, both were Bay Area companies with ties to counterculture.

How often has The North Face re-released the jacket?

The iconic Steal Your Face jacket has been reissued by The North Face a handful of times, often for Grateful Dead anniversaries. Collaborations with Supreme and other streetwear brands have also used the design.

Why does the Steal Your Face logo remain popular today?

The Steal Your Face skull endures as a counterculture image associated with the Dead. It continues to inspire new generations and appears widely in pop culture via tattoos, art, merchandise, and media references.