It's a Sickness

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What began as a gag birthday gift to protest his now-ex-wife's obsession with yoga, Fuck Yoga creator Barnaby Harris turned into the cornerstone of his "It's A Sickness" brand, which jokingly points the (middle) finger at American fixations. After the former Broadway stage manager—and avid yoga practitioner—stamped his resentment for the commercialization of sun salutations onto a white tank top in the form of "fuck yoga," the f-word soon spread; his subsequent line of T's and tanks were seen on Sex and the City, Desperate Housewives and on the breasts of good-humored fans from South Africa to Amsterdam. "It fucking changed my life," Harris says. In 2004, he opened an office-like cubby of a shop where, against an urbane backdrop of red currant potpourri and exposed brick walls, portraits of a yoga-challenged Alan Cumming fuel the punchline. Still a yoga devotee, Harris explains that fellow pose fanatics unfurl his fuck yoga gear and mats in class to stir up an otherwise stiff bunch. The store's multi-colored spread of men's and women's shirts also drops the f-bomb on universally worshipped po-mo architect Frank Gehry, while Harris' forthcoming expansion of Sickness gear takes aim at other beloved American crutches like smoking (Pack-a-Days: 7300 Cigarettes a Year,) religion (Prayer Ain't Cutting It,) shopping, and, of course, chocolate. — Molly Noonan