Phat Caps

Raekha Merner

It’s surprising to discover much in the way of culture in a city of cowboys, conservatives, and the crude, but culture is exactly what inspired the pieces behind Calgary-based FatCaps Clothing.

“People just assume that everyone in Calgary listens to country music,” said Justin Zak, designer and artist of FatCaps Clothing. “But we actually have a pretty tight hip-hop scene here.  It’s underground, it’s growing, but it’s here.”

FatCaps’ current collection includes graffiti bombed caps and kicks inspired by the hip-hop and urban scene currently sweeping the underground culture of Canadian metropolises from coast to coast.  Look no further than the back alley behind your favourite club or on the advertisements at your bus stop and you can see from where Zak’s designs are derived.

“Most of my inspiration for the pieces behind FatCaps comes from the many dedicated years I spent as a graffiti writer….I love to paint.  I don’t care what kind of paint or what I am painting, I just love to paint.”