Our mission is to marry high quality art with exceptionally comfortable basics at an affordable price. All products are designed and shipped in the United States. Owning a piece from Pathos Of Things means you are apart of a growing culture that bridges the gap between streetwear, music, and animation. 

 

The name Pathos Of Things comes from the Japanese phrase 物の哀れ, pronounced mono no aware.

Mono no aware (物の哀れ), literally "the pathos of things", and also translated as "an empathy toward things", or "a sensitivity to ephemera", is a Japanese term for the awareness of impermanence (無常, mujō), or transience of things, and both a transient gentle sadness (or wistfulness) at their passing.

 

Happy, but sad at the same time. Bittersweet. Neutral. Accepting. 

We like to take this concept a step further beyond this definition. By understanding the impermanence of things, we recognize not only the melancholic aspects of life, but also the equally beautiful aspects.

If we could take one piece of pop culture and have it embody this concept, it would be 80s/90s future or cyber punk anime. 

Examples: Gundam, Bubblegum Crisis, Neon Genesis: Evangellion

THE REASON: Watching these shows today makes them feel retro. They are animated all clunky, the voice acting isn't great, and it's obvious they were made 20-30 years ago.

However, the concepts and aesthetics of these shows are futuristic. Characters race flying cars, live in mega cities filled with neon, and utilize technology that is not even invented to this day.

So now we have a situation where something makes the viewer feel nostalgic, yet it's still cutting edge.

Same goes for music: the biggest hit songs utilize familiar concepts in unique and cutting edge ways.

People might HATE that music for a couple of months before it takes off and becomes a hit. That's when artists or pieces of pop culture become iconic. 

With everything we create, we want to achieve this. We take influences, make them better. Make them feel fresh and new. Trends are not permanent, nothing is permanent, but icons hold influence for generations. 

 

物の哀れ