KENNESAW, Ga. | Feb 10, 2026

A cozy and familiar item of clothing is the focus of a museum exhibit co-curated by Kennesaw State University associate professor Regina N. Bradley.

Bradley, an associate professor of English in the Norman J. Radow College of Humanities and Social Sciences, is a co-curator of “The Hoodie: Identity, Power, Protest,” currently on display at the Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA). Bradley explained that the exhibit explores the hoodie’s evolution from a practical garment to a powerful cultural, political, and social symbol across sports, fashion, music, and popular culture.

“This is my eighth year at KSU, and this is the first exhibit I’ve ever curated,” she said. “So, it was exciting to take my research beyond the classroom and into a public space.”

The exhibit is a recreation of the original Hoodie exhibit curated in 2019 by British writer Lou Stoppard and first presented in Rotterdam. Bradley explained that the MODA exhibit was reimagined for Atlanta with a strong emphasis on Southern identity and culture.

MODA’s executive director Laura Flusche invited Bradley to help curate the exhibit for its Atlanta debut, drawing on Bradley’s extensive research in Black popular culture, Southern hip-hop, and post–Civil Rights-era Black American studies.

“This exhibition asks how a simple garment came to carry so much meaning,” Flusche said. “The hoodie tells stories about youth culture, labor, protest, and power and those stories feel especially urgent right now.”

Together, the curators focused on how the hoodie intersects with themes of power, privilege, politics and identity, particularly in the South.

“What makes this exhibit different is its Southern perspective,” Bradley said. “I wanted to highlight how the hoodie shows up in Southern popular culture from hip-hop and fashion to comics and everyday life.”

One of the exhibit’s standout pieces is a massive, 26-foot hoodie created by artist Billy Grace Lynn, as well as a “hoodie library” featuring books on fashion and cultural history. The exhibit also includes a wall of more than 200 donated hoodies, showcasing designs ranging from pop culture references to personal expressions of identity.

Museum visitors are also guided through the history of the hoodie, which dates to the 1930s when it was introduced by Champion as a functional sweatshirt designed to keep workers and athletes warm. From there, the exhibit traces the hoodie’s rise through sports, film, fashion and music, Southern hip-hop artists and Atlanta-based designers.

Bradley says the exhibit is an extension of KSU’s commitment to education beyond the classroom.

“This is a great example of how academic research can live outside the university and engage the broader community,” Bradley said. “It expands what people think academia can be.”

The exhibit will be on display at MODA through Feb. 12.

– Story by Christin Senior

Photo provided by Michael Jordan, AJC

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees to its more than 51,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university's vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties, and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 8 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.