The Cosby Sweater Project

May 18, 2011 5:57 AM

The Cosby Sweater Project is a blog by Kelly Tucker where she draws/paints a single piece of clothing (usually the eponymous sweater) from every episode of The Cosby Show in chronological order. Some favorites: s1e4, s1e5, s1e16, s1e18, s2e1, s2e6. Finally, a short interview with Bill Cosby about sweaters.
posted by Kattullus (31 comments total)

Doesn't it ever get warm in Brooklyn?
posted by fungible at 6:03 AM on May 18, 2011

Doesn't it ever get warm in Brooklyn?

People who can afford Brownstone Brooklyn have really nice central AC.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 6:06 AM on May 18, 2011

Not with all the jell-o puddin' pops they eat there.

*Cosby face (you know the one)*
posted by to sir with millipedes at 6:07 AM on May 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

My wife and I are watching the best Simpson's seasons with the older kids for awesomeness/cultural literacy reasons. I recently suggested we should watch a few episodes of Cosby as well. And then I said "Gordon Gar-Trail" (or however you spell it). And then I clicked s1e5. Awesome.
posted by DU at 6:23 AM on May 18, 2011

This is less awesome than I thought it would be.
posted by cashman at 6:30 AM on May 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

This is my apron. It was designed for me.
posted by Eideteker at 6:33 AM on May 18, 2011 [3 favorites]

This is less awesome than I thought it would be.

You would really dislike The Mr. Rogers Sweater Project, I bet.
posted by TedW at 6:42 AM on May 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

The colors should matter as much as the shapes. In s1e4, for instance, she has the color sienna (173,59,48) where the actual color, blackberry, (65,18,34) is much more evocative of those times.
posted by StickyCarpet at 6:44 AM on May 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

Something about this strikes me as LOL MIDDLE CLASS BLACK PEOPLE
posted by slogger at 6:57 AM on May 18, 2011

are we not allowed to LOL middle class black people?
posted by spicynuts at 7:10 AM on May 18, 2011

It's less LOL MIDDLE CLASS BLACK PEOPLE and more AWWW MIDDLE CLASS 80s FASHION. I liked it. Made me nostalgic.
posted by chara at 7:15 AM on May 18, 2011 [4 favorites]

Obligatory: Pal, that's the worst fucking sweater I've ever seen...
posted by King Bee at 7:23 AM on May 18, 2011

Oh, look. Another one-trick Tumblr pony. I am agog.
posted by Emperor SnooKloze at 7:25 AM on May 18, 2011

This is less awesome than I thought it would be.

I thought it would be pedestrian-- just another dusty box in the great, big Internet Warehouse of someone cribbing from someone else's iconic work to put their own little vanity spin on it for public consumption. People copying the same kind of copying everyone else is doing.

Keep your eyes on your own paper, children...
posted by Alexandra Kitty at 7:52 AM on May 18, 2011 [3 favorites]

They lost all credibility with this: s2e6. The even have the nerve to acknowledge it's not a sweater. So much for being true to your ideals.
posted by blue_beetle at 8:28 AM on May 18, 2011

Whenever my SO plays Minecraft I want to do a Bill Cosby impression that;'s all about the mining and the crafting and the punching of the zombies...


But I haven't seen it for 20 years so I just can't do the voice. And that just makes me want to punch one of those pigs right in their little pink blocky faces.
posted by mippy at 8:29 AM on May 18, 2011 [2 favorites]

If it's not a sweater, you're probably the product, bleu_beetle.
posted by Eideteker at 8:46 AM on May 18, 2011 [3 favorites]

People who can afford Brownstone Brooklyn have really nice central AC.

Wow, I've never seen central AC in an brownstone. Seems like you might almost have to gut the place to put in the ducts.
posted by Ad hominem at 8:51 AM on May 18, 2011

Just make a gif with all the sweaters he wore on the show in it. That would be funnier and more impressive. I appreciate the idea here but two of the first three I looked weren't even sweaters.
posted by stinkycheese at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2011

This is less awesome than I thought it would be.

Yeah, now i want someone to screenshot every sweater Cosby has ever worn on the show...
posted by palbo at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2011

*first three links
posted by stinkycheese at 9:59 AM on May 18, 2011

I know it's not a sweater, but does/will it have a Gordon Gartrelle?
posted by symbioid at 11:12 AM on May 18, 2011

I really want to knit my own version of Vanessa's car sweater now.
posted by Kurichina at 12:58 PM on May 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

I like the track star sweater.
posted by PY at 2:28 PM on May 18, 2011

Thanks for the interview. It mentioned the name of the Dutch designer who made some of the beautiful sweaters Cosby wore.
posted by PY at 2:31 PM on May 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

Interview with Koos Van Den Akker on Behind the Seams.
posted by mike_bling at 5:18 PM on May 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

Also, Netflix is streaming every episode of the Cosby show. What an amazingly great show it was.
posted by mike_bling at 5:22 PM on May 18, 2011

The project is not a bad concept but the drawings are just not that good.
posted by mike_bling at 5:24 PM on May 18, 2011

This is less awesome than I thought it would be.

Yes, but I think it's going to get better. She is doing them one episode at a time starting from the first episode. The quintessential Cosby sweaters were the collage creations from Koos Van Der Akker. These sweaters didn't start appearing until sometime during the second season. She hasn't yet gotten to these sweaters yet. Her latest post from yesterday is from the 6th episode of season 2.

I looked up the 2nd season episodes on YouTube. I think the first true Cosby sweater shows up half way thru the 13th episode of season 2, titled "The Auction".
posted by marsha56 at 7:43 PM on May 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

That's a nice one. Looks like leather in that sweater.
posted by PY at 4:47 AM on May 19, 2011

Yeah, leather arms. Damn.
posted by cashman at 5:13 AM on May 19, 2011