Japanese Fashion
I've been into Japanese fashion since high school. In our school library there was a book called "FRUITS" which i later found out was a magazine that highlighted Japanese fashion and culture around Harajuku.
I started to get into Nigo's creations without really knowing it. I was into Bape tees and hoodies, baggy jeans and air force 1s - essentially the uniform of the 00s.
However it wasn't until post-university that i became interested in Japanese fashion in the context of streetwear and less in the context of fashion subcultures mostly exclusive to Japan.
I've found myself to be interested in 4 brands (3 for wearability and 1 more for their design philosophy): Comme Des Garcons headed by Rei Kawakubo, Undercover headed by Jun Takahashi, Issey Miyake headed by Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto headed by Yohji Yamamoto.
Comme Des Garcons
Comme Des Garcons by Junya Watanabe is probably my favourite iteration of the brand. While Rei was a fan of using anti-fashion as her design ethos, Watanabe was interested in drawing inspiration from streetwear and combining it with pattern making and mixed materials in order to create something new and truly unique. I think i'm most interested in his creations under the Comme Des Garcons umbrella:
Comme Des Garcons SHIRT boys, Good Design Shop, CDG and Dover Street Market were birthed in the 10's and catered to the brand conscious youth who essentially liked branding and logos plastered on everything. It was a great way to appeal to the youth and eventually get them interested in the other lines under the CdG umbrella. This is what a lot of people i know are interested in and because i'm searching more for innovation in design, not what i am looking for. Junya keeps it 100 for me.
Undercover
Takahashi was born in 1969 (49 years old) and studied at the Bunka College of Fashion in 1988 before founding Undercover in 1989. Initially, Undercover mostly consisted of tees that Takahashi would customize himself with studs and patches. Takahashi's first storefront was the now infamous NOWHERE which split down the middle by a wire fence, carried Undercover on one side and items by Nigo on the other.
In 1994, Undercover held their first runway show as part of Tokyo fashion Week. By playing with proportion and incorporating key punk elements such as tartan and mohair, items traditionally associated with street style were transformed into fashion must-haves. This would go on to form the central thought behind Undercover's designs
SS03 Scab - Decorative tribal elements were added to basic pieces through layering strips of fabric into multiple patchwork layers. After creating the silhouette, Takahashi would rip, destroy and rework every garment by hand
As Takahashi and Watanabe peaked at their careers around the same time, there are some elements that i can make out that they both drew upon. Take the above for example, patchwork denim similar to Watanabe, however with a distressed punk feel that Undercover is well known for.
AW04 But Beautiful
AW04 Arts & Crafts - Nearly every piece was made entirely out of felt
More punk feels popular in the 00s, not so popular in the workplace.
SS06 T - Imaginary bands
I actually dig this imaginary band stuff. It's a great concept - drawing on the fact that people love band merch but making a fictional band and spawning a whole line of fashion from the concept. The amazing tale of zamiang has some great pieces that make you look like punk rockstar.
AW13 Anatomicouture - White dress entirely from men's button-up shirt collars
I saw many of these as i was a kid as it filtered its way down into the mainstream. But the quality and design of this jacket is like none other that i've seen before. It's a bit metal for me but i love those who can pull it off.
Following these shows, Undercover had subsequent collaborations with Supreme and Uniqlo, allowing Undercover to travel briefly back to Urahara and act as a crutch during a sluggish period for the luxury market following the 2008 financial crisis.
Yohji Yamamoto
Yamamoto was born in Tokyo in 1943 (75) to a soldier father and dressmaker mother. He enrolled in Bunka (where Takahashi later went) and graduated in 1968.
In 1977, Yamamoto got his big break thanks to his collection shown at Tokyo's Bell Commons. Yamamoto's vision was the blurring of the lines between men and women's clothing, playing with the ideals of beauty and tension between the East and West as well as the power dynamics conveyed by what we put on our bodies.
Yamamoto's collections are characterized by conflict and darkness. Not just in his predominantly black clothes but the way they hide and complement the body.
Issey Miyake
Miyake honed his skills in Paris in the 1960s with an apprenticeship at Givenchy. Upon returning to Japan in 1970, he founded the Miyake Design Studio and began playing with Western design, applying Eastern fabrication techniques and delicately subverting conventional Western fashion.
Miyake began experimenting with pleated polyester in the '80s and created Pleats Please, arguably his most celebrated line wholly committed to the style in 1993:
Miyake also created the now defunct Issey Sports line targeted at the fashion conscious youth and university students:
I personally own an interation of the bomber on the left and i love the classic cropped cut and how it sits on my frame.
I've learnt a lot about my 3 favourite designers today. I'm mostly a fan of Junya Watanabe's work at Comme des Garcons as opposed to Rei's, naturally because he has invested more time in CdGH as well as his eponymous line. I love his use of different patterns and fabrics to create something truly unique. Jun Takahashi's Undercover has an amazing punk dystopian feel to it with hand distressed clothing and grungy looks. Yohji Yamamoto i can appreciate more for the art and inspiration to the future generations (perhaps i'm more interested in his ongoing collaboration project with adidas Y-3) and Issey Miyake i literally just appreciate the college cut bombers.
Love.
I started to get into Nigo's creations without really knowing it. I was into Bape tees and hoodies, baggy jeans and air force 1s - essentially the uniform of the 00s.
However it wasn't until post-university that i became interested in Japanese fashion in the context of streetwear and less in the context of fashion subcultures mostly exclusive to Japan.
I've found myself to be interested in 4 brands (3 for wearability and 1 more for their design philosophy): Comme Des Garcons headed by Rei Kawakubo, Undercover headed by Jun Takahashi, Issey Miyake headed by Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto headed by Yohji Yamamoto.
Comme Des Garcons
Comme Des Garcons by Junya Watanabe is probably my favourite iteration of the brand. While Rei was a fan of using anti-fashion as her design ethos, Watanabe was interested in drawing inspiration from streetwear and combining it with pattern making and mixed materials in order to create something new and truly unique. I think i'm most interested in his creations under the Comme Des Garcons umbrella:
Comme Des Garcons SHIRT boys, Good Design Shop, CDG and Dover Street Market were birthed in the 10's and catered to the brand conscious youth who essentially liked branding and logos plastered on everything. It was a great way to appeal to the youth and eventually get them interested in the other lines under the CdG umbrella. This is what a lot of people i know are interested in and because i'm searching more for innovation in design, not what i am looking for. Junya keeps it 100 for me.
Undercover
Takahashi was born in 1969 (49 years old) and studied at the Bunka College of Fashion in 1988 before founding Undercover in 1989. Initially, Undercover mostly consisted of tees that Takahashi would customize himself with studs and patches. Takahashi's first storefront was the now infamous NOWHERE which split down the middle by a wire fence, carried Undercover on one side and items by Nigo on the other.
In 1994, Undercover held their first runway show as part of Tokyo fashion Week. By playing with proportion and incorporating key punk elements such as tartan and mohair, items traditionally associated with street style were transformed into fashion must-haves. This would go on to form the central thought behind Undercover's designs
SS03 Scab - Decorative tribal elements were added to basic pieces through layering strips of fabric into multiple patchwork layers. After creating the silhouette, Takahashi would rip, destroy and rework every garment by hand
As Takahashi and Watanabe peaked at their careers around the same time, there are some elements that i can make out that they both drew upon. Take the above for example, patchwork denim similar to Watanabe, however with a distressed punk feel that Undercover is well known for.
AW04 But Beautiful
The fur and bondage straps here are very reminiscent of Helmut here. Love that Takahashi drew inspiration from him.
More punk feels popular in the 00s, not so popular in the workplace.
SS06 T - Imaginary bands
I actually dig this imaginary band stuff. It's a great concept - drawing on the fact that people love band merch but making a fictional band and spawning a whole line of fashion from the concept. The amazing tale of zamiang has some great pieces that make you look like punk rockstar.
AW13 Anatomicouture - White dress entirely from men's button-up shirt collars
I saw many of these as i was a kid as it filtered its way down into the mainstream. But the quality and design of this jacket is like none other that i've seen before. It's a bit metal for me but i love those who can pull it off.
Following these shows, Undercover had subsequent collaborations with Supreme and Uniqlo, allowing Undercover to travel briefly back to Urahara and act as a crutch during a sluggish period for the luxury market following the 2008 financial crisis.
Yohji Yamamoto
Yamamoto was born in Tokyo in 1943 (75) to a soldier father and dressmaker mother. He enrolled in Bunka (where Takahashi later went) and graduated in 1968.
In 1977, Yamamoto got his big break thanks to his collection shown at Tokyo's Bell Commons. Yamamoto's vision was the blurring of the lines between men and women's clothing, playing with the ideals of beauty and tension between the East and West as well as the power dynamics conveyed by what we put on our bodies.
Yamamoto's collections are characterized by conflict and darkness. Not just in his predominantly black clothes but the way they hide and complement the body.
Issey Miyake
Miyake honed his skills in Paris in the 1960s with an apprenticeship at Givenchy. Upon returning to Japan in 1970, he founded the Miyake Design Studio and began playing with Western design, applying Eastern fabrication techniques and delicately subverting conventional Western fashion.
Miyake began experimenting with pleated polyester in the '80s and created Pleats Please, arguably his most celebrated line wholly committed to the style in 1993:
Miyake also created the now defunct Issey Sports line targeted at the fashion conscious youth and university students:
I've learnt a lot about my 3 favourite designers today. I'm mostly a fan of Junya Watanabe's work at Comme des Garcons as opposed to Rei's, naturally because he has invested more time in CdGH as well as his eponymous line. I love his use of different patterns and fabrics to create something truly unique. Jun Takahashi's Undercover has an amazing punk dystopian feel to it with hand distressed clothing and grungy looks. Yohji Yamamoto i can appreciate more for the art and inspiration to the future generations (perhaps i'm more interested in his ongoing collaboration project with adidas Y-3) and Issey Miyake i literally just appreciate the college cut bombers.
Love.
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