Fashion
What Your Spring 2025 Statement Graphic T-Shirt Says About You
Don’t be afraid to get cerebral with it.
There are proclamations at least once every six months of the return of graphic T-shirt. I’d like to argue it is not so back because it hasn’t gone anywhere; its significance in telling a story, however, has only heightened. Everyone surely remembers Rihanna’s “I’m Retired” shirt and the Challengers-inspired “I TOLD YA” that was inescapable last year. The majority of well-to-do, frequently photographed people have a solid rotation in their closet, but 2025 is shaping up to be a year of really wearing your heart (and your cultural passions) on your pre-shrunken cotton T-shirt.
Below, we’ve rounded up eight archetypes based on the graphic T-shirt of their choosing, whether you want to go stan mode and wear an Isabelle Huppert-covered Balenciaga shirt or opt for something more vibe-forward from Reformation’s Devon Lee Carlson collaboration. Shop them, or get some inspiration for the next time you hit a wall of Harley Davidson and Grateful Dead tie-dye pieces at a vintage store.
The Book-Club Savant
Kaia is a top model, book-club runner, and nightdress maker. Her divisive merch (like a $10 branded highlighter) have drawn more eyes to Library Science, which may be the point, but there’s nothing polarizing about this “bare mininum” relationship-requirement T-shirt. It just so happens to come in the perfect shade of “don’t-talk-to-me-unless-you’ve-read-Eliot” pink.
The T-Shirt-Dress Revivalist
This is perhaps the most classic vintage T-shirt of the bunch, and while we can’t guarantee your legs will look like Bella’s in a thigh-skimming shirt-dress, you can at least aim for the same off-the-shoulder styling should you choose to wear some pants. Go up at least two sizes for the baggy look.
The Doll Advocate
Pedro Pascal wore this T-shirt to appear on Jimmy Kimmel, and it was for a good cause. His stylist Julie Ragolia is working with the Trans Justice Funding Project on Mother Daughter Holy Spirit, a three-part fundraiser that includes a limited run of printed T-shirts featuring artwork by Miranda July, Aimee Lee Wood, Chloë Sevigny, and many more luminaries. All proceeds go directly to TJFP.
The Designer-Only Diva
Dua’s never one to wear something simple (or inexpensive, it seems), so when we saw her in this simple white “HARDCORE” tank, we knew it had to be designer. Alas, it’s a Stella McCartney original, and inspires us to aim bigger with our basics.
The Classical-Art Geek
While I’m still personally mourning the departure of Jonathan Anderson from Loewe, the brand is celebrating one of his final collections, Spring/Summer 2025, by finally releasing the delightful and hilarious artist T-shirts. The commercial versions only have a feather effect (sad for us), but they still impart the same loony message. Wear this Mozart one and bag a chamber-orchestra clarinetist immediately.
The Cali Girl
If all the heady, quasi-intellectual shirts are too much, just go for the SoCal, sun-drenched vibe courtesy of Devon Lee Carlson and Reformation.
The Movie Buff
If you’re a Metrograph member (or your boyfriend is), this one’s for you. Sacai’s Spring/Summer 2025 menswear show was a love letter to James Dean and California iconography, so borrow from the boys and hope someone doesn’t come up to you and ask about your favorite Dean movie (when in doubt, say East of Eden).
The Fan-Tee Collector
Balenciaga’s Fall 2025 collection had Dr. Scholl’s heels (scary), extra-large sunglasses (the year’s biggest trend-to-be), and a sampling of fan T-shirts featuring ambassadors like Isabelle Huppert and, yes, Nicole Kidman. Charli XCX previously wore this shirt on TikTok and got Kidman’s attention, so it’s worth a shot.
