Polo Ralph Lauren for Oak Bluffs

Salt Air & Satin Jackets: Ralph Lauren Honors the Cultural Legacy of Oak Bluffs

words by Teneshia Carr

On the northeastern edge of Martha’s Vineyard, far beyond the fashion weeks and velvet ropes of New York, sits Oak Bluffs, a town whose legacy is stitched not in spectacle, but in memory. It’s a place where porches talk, where generations return to the identical salt-washed cottages, and where Black excellence has long found a quiet stronghold in sea breeze and tradition. Now, the world of Ralph Lauren has arrived, not to reimagine Oak Bluffs, but to reflect it.

With the launch of the Polo Ralph Lauren for Oak Bluffs collection, the brand continues its evolving dialogue with Black cultural heritage. This isn’t Ralph’s first foray into that space; his previous collaborations with Morehouse and Spelman Colleges in 2022 set a precedent for style that centers legacy. But this collection, conceived with the same alumni-turned-designers and released under the brand’s ‘Design with Intent’ platform, a program that aims to create fashion with a purpose, takes things further: off campus and into community. Here, summer style is the story, and every garment is a page from a living archive.

The campaign unfolds like a love letter to Oak Bluffs, where Ralph Lauren’s signature Americana meets the specificity of Black coastal leisure. Shot on location by Nadine Ijewere and directed by author-filmmaker Cole Brown, the imagery speaks in textures, weathered wood, sun-bleached textiles, and legacy-laced eye contact. These are not posed models; they are community elders, porch-sitters, students, professors, and lifelong islanders, those who know the rhythm of the five-to-seven, the porch social just before dusk.

And the clothing? It hums with heritage. A maroon satin varsity jacket bearing Morehouse’s Maroon Tiger snarls with subtle power. A powder-blue and ivory cardigan nods softly to Spelman’s own visual language, embroidered with the jaguar mascot and landmark motifs from its Atlanta campus. Meanwhile, quilted jackets and matching blankets pay tribute to nautical traditions, each patch a quiet affirmation of island memory. These pieces don’t try to speak over Oak Bluffs; they listen, then echo.

“This collection is about more than a charming coastal town; it’s a story of the American dream,“ Ralph Lauren said in a statement. It’s a lofty claim, but one that resonates. For many Black families, Oak Bluffs represents an ongoing act of reclamation of land, space, leisure, and selfhood. It’s one of the few places in America where Black generational wealth is not an anomaly, but a defining characteristic.

“We approached both the collection and the film by first spending time on the Vineyard and really studying the remarkable history of Oak Bluffs—flipping through generations of family albums and listening to stories of life there from generations of locals who have really lived it,” says James Jeter, Creative Director, Men’s Polo. “We wanted to share the unspoken magic of this place with the world. Whether or not you’ve been to Oak Bluffs or attended an HBCU, everyone can connect to that comfort of a familiar community and that feeling of ease when you find a home away from home.”

By leaning into this truth, Ralph Lauren doesn’t just sell clothes. It participates in narrative repair. For decades, fashion has borrowed liberally from Black culture, raiding its archives without credit. With the Oak Bluffs campaign, the brand reverses that trend, embedding itself in community, history, and lived experience. The result is not costume, but a respectful collaboration that values the community’s heritage and culture.

The visual campaign is accompanied by a short documentary titled “A Portrait of the American Dream: Oak Bluffs,” premiering on YouTube on July 24th. Featuring archival footage and real-life stories from island residents and HBCU alums, the film will screen again at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival in August. This commitment to storytelling cements Ralph Lauren’s dedication not just to the story, but to the storytellers themselves, inviting the audience to be part of the narrative.

And in keeping with that ethos, the brand has committed tangible support to the local community. Proceeds will assist The Cottagers, Inc., a nonprofit organization of 100 Black female homeowners working to preserve the island’s historic and cultural heritage. Other partners include the Martha’s Vineyard Museum, the African American Heritage Trail, and the UNCF, supporting scholarships for HBCU students and long-term recruitment efforts in the fashion industry.
Of course, there are inevitable critiques when legacy brands enter culturally sacred spaces. But this feels different. The care is evident in the stitches, in the casting, and in the collaborations. Nothing here is generic. Every detail, from the embroidery to the archival references, has been co-signed by those who live the story being told.
At a time when fashion often leans into fleeting trends and performative allyship, the Polo Ralph Lauren for Oak Bluffs collection offers a model for something slower, deeper, and more resonant. It affirms that American style is not a monolith but a collage and that Black coastal culture is not a sub-genre but a pillar.
In Oak Bluffs, beauty is not just seen, it’s remembered. Ralph Lauren’s latest work captures that rare thing in fashion: reverence. And in doing so, it reminds us that style is at its best when it reflects not just the body, but the soul of a place.