Modernists (Mods) were originally grouped into a subculture characterised by a smart stylish appearance, focused on fashion and music, the riding of Italian scooters, and a liking for jazz, R&B, and soul music, partying non-stop (the original ravers), anti-establishment against ‘The Establishment’ (the original punks), a ‘rebellion based on consuming pleasures’.
The Mod scene developed in the early 1960s when British teenagers began to reject the ‘dull, timid, old-fashioned, and uninspired’ British culture, with its repressed and class-obsessed mentality (Terry Rawlings). Modernists aimed at being ‘cool, neat, sharp, hip, and smart’ by embracing ‘all things exciting and streamlined’. Mod’s aesthetic has influenced art, film and fashion, indeed, every aspect of British culture. This durable scene now interlinks several subcultures, mods, scooterists, skinheads, suedeheads, rude boys, and ska who share a love of fashion and music genres such as northern soul, ska, rocksteady, reggae, 2 Tone ska, together with jazz/funk/R&B.
There is some analogy between the factors contributing to rise of the Modernists with the current story and ethos behind the craft beer revolution against the large beer producing multinationals. Just like the early Modernists customising their clothes by combining and reinventing different fashions the craft beer producers are pushing boundaries to create a wide range of new and exciting modern beers!
Law Brewing Co is located in the city of Dundee. Today, the city is reinventing itself as a destination for art and design, scientific research, video games, quality Scottish cuisine, and a vibrant music/DJ scene. The V&A Museum of Design will be opening next year as a new international centre of design in Scotland, and the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design is now considered one the best art schools in Europe. To highlight the recent progress, Dundee was named the UK’s first City of Design by the United Nations in 2014 and named ‘coolest city in the UK’ by GQ magazine in 2015.
The mission of Law Brewing Company is to present a Modernist perspective on the craft beer scene embracing some of the identifying Mod symbols in concert with the new modern vibe developing in the city.
