T-shirt atau yang lebih dikenal dengan sebutan Kaos, diperkirakan muncul antara akhir abad ke- 19 hingga awal abad ke-20. Kaos berbahan katun biasanya dipakai oleh Tentara Eropa sebagai pakaian dalam (di balik seragam), dan biasanya dipakai sebagai pakaian luar jika mereka beristirahat di udara, darat maupun laut pada siang yang panas. Pada perang Dunia II, Tshirt menjadi perlengkapan standar dalam pakaian militer di Eropa dan Amerika Serikat.
Pada tahun 1947 kaos mulai dikenal di seluruh dunia lewat John Wayne, Marlon Brando dalam filmnya A Streetcar Named Desire tahun1951 dan James Dean yang memakai pakaian dalam tersebut untuk pakaian luar dalam film-film mereka. Dan puncaknya adalah ketika James Dean mengenakan kaos sebagai symbol pemberontakan kaum muda dalam Rebel Without A Cause (1955).
Pada saat itulah revolusi T-shirt terjadi secara total. Para penggiat bisnis atau pengusaha konveksi menyadari bahwa T-shirt dapat menjadi media promosi yang amat efektif serta efesien. Segala persyaratan sebagai media promosi yang baik ada di T-shirt. Murah, mobile, fungsional, dapat dijadikan suvenir, dan seterusnya.
Di Indonesia sendiri, konon katanya masuknya kaos karena dibawa oleh orang-orang Belanda. Namun ketika itu perkembangannya tidak pesat, sebab kaos mempunyai nilai gengsi tingkat tinggi, dan di Indonesia teknologi permintaannya belum maju, Akibatnya kaos termasuk barang mahal. Namun demikian, kaos baru menampakkan perkembangan yang signifikan hingga merambah ke segenap pelosok pedesaan sekitar awal tahun 1970. Ketika itu wujudnya masih konvensional. Berwarna putih, bahan katun-halus-tipis, melekat ketat di badan dan hanya untuk kaum pria. Beberapa merek yang terkenal waktu itu adalah Swan dan 77. Ada juga merek Cabe Rawit, Kembang Manggis, dan lain-lain.
Tidak hanya di Amerika dan Eropa, di Indonesia pun kaos sudah menjadi media berekspresi. Kaos yang berwarna putih itu diberi gambar vinyet, dan waktu itu sempat menjadi tren/mode di kalangan anak muda Indonesia. Tapi tidak lama. Berikutnya vinyet digeser oleh tulisan – tulisan yang berwarna-warni. Tekniknya sepeprti sablon. Selain itu, ada juga gambar-gambar koboi, orang-orang berambut gondrong, dan lain-lain. Warna bahan kaos pun sudah semarak, yaitu merah, hitam, biru kuning. Dan, tren kaos rupa-rupanya direkam pula oleh Kartunis GM Sudarta melalui tokoh Om Pasikom dan kemenakannya dengan tajuk Generasi Kaos Oblong.
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T-shirt History
T-shirts, or better known as Kaos, are thought to have appeared between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Cotton T-shirts were usually worn by European Soldiers as undergarment (under the uniform), and usually as outer clothing when they rested in the air, land or sea on hot days. During World War II, the T-shirt became standard equipment in military clothing in Europe and the United States.
In 1947 T-shirts became known throughout the world through John Wayne, Marlon Brando in his film A Streetcar Named Desire in 1951 and James Dean who wore underwear for outerwear in their films. And the peak was when James Dean wore a shirt as a symbol of youth rebellion in Rebel Without A Cause (1955).
It was at that time that the T-shirt revolution took place in total. Business activists or convection entrepreneurs realize that T-shirts can be a very effective and efficient promotional medium. All the requirements as a good promotional media are on T-shirts. Cheap, mobile, functional, can be used as souvenirs, and so on.
In Indonesia itself, it is said that the T-shirts were brought by the Dutch. However, at that time the development was not rapid, because t-shirts had a high level of prestige, and in Indonesia the demand for technology was not yet advanced, as a result, t-shirts were considered expensive goods. However, the new t-shirts showed significant progress until they penetrated all corners of the countryside around the early 1970s. At that time, their form was still conventional. White in color, soft-cotton material, tightly attached to the body and only for men. Some of the well-known brands at that time were Swan and 77. There were also Cabe Rawit, Kembang Manggis, and others.
Not only in America and Europe, in Indonesia, t-shirts have become a medium of expression. The white t-shirt was given a vignette, and at that time it had become a trend/fashion among young Indonesians. But not for long. Next the vignette is shifted by colorful writing. The technique is like screen printing. In addition, there are also pictures of cowboys, people with long hair, and others. The color of the t-shirt material is also lively, namely red, black, blue, yellow. And, it seems that the trend of t-shirts was also recorded by cartoonist GM Sudarta through the character Om Pasikom and his nephew with the title T-shirt Generation.