In the competitive world of clothing design and marketing, thousands of start up creators clamor for public acceptance, pursuing the vogue of cutting edge fashion and trying to compete with big manufacturers. This world extends even into the hallways of NVD, in the form of Anguish Apparel, an ambitious startup street-fashion brand by junior Yotam Harari. 

Harari started his unofficial company via an Instagram account in March of this year, and has since designed and produced dozens of articles of clothing by hand, under the Anguish brand. Working from his garage in spare hours, he taps into a wellspring of creativity to bring his pieces to life.

“It’s more of a realization of a dream; I always dream big about a lot of things,” Harari said of launching his business. “It started out as an art hobby, and eventually progressed to something I was more confident in.”

Anguish Apparel advertises an “urban-based”, streetwear style, inspired by the Portland art scene and its underground fashion community, with which Harari was involved prior to his move to Demarest in 2022. His unique graphics are achieved through “screen printing” or “silk screening” a method of stenciling originating in Ancient China, in which paint is pressed through a mesh screen onto fabrics to produce a specific design. 

“Generally I’ll let my creativity flow, when it comes to the designs that I make and what I print,” Harari said. “I like to have a wide range, I like to experiment, but as far as what you’ll see advertised for Anguish, it’s usually within the certain vision for what this line is, what I represent.”

In accordance with his aforementioned street-style philosophy, Harari takes much of his stock from thrifted, second hand clothes, which he then transforms into something fresh and singular. Whether it be screen printing poems or graphics in dramatic font, or cutting up fabrics into inspired compositions, the vision of Anguish is clear and unstoppable, evoking both echoes of a grunge past and something distinctly original.

“I can envision something great coming from what I do, from my craft,” Harari said. “I see this as the beginning of my business.”

With these lofty aspirations, NVD’s newest clothing designer is seeking to grow wherever he can, and advertise Anguish Apparel to a larger audience. At this stage in its development, any opportunities are good ones, and could involve artistic collaborations, custom clothing commissions, and much more. 

“I want to expand, I want to do stuff with other artists, I want to be more in touch with the marketplace at NVD,” Harari said. “At this point it’s hard to say what the future may hold, but I am sure it will be filled with great things.”

Direct message commission requests & business inquiries to @anguish_apparel on Instagram