Renowned Japanese designer credited for his luxury avant-garde concepts that have impacted the world, has died at the age of 84.
It was in 1971 when Issey Miyake launched his first collection in New York and began to show in Paris Fashion Week in Autumn/Winter 1973. Per the official brand website, since the beginning his design concept has focused on “A Piece of Cloth” breaking boundaries between East and West, pursuing “the body, the fabric covering it, and a comfortable relationship between the two.”
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While the company has expanded with creative personnel and has evolved through innovative techniques, at the heart of Issey Miyake’s core design style remains the intact: creating clothes from original materials starting with the research of a single thread. It is a concept that has transcended generations.
According to The New York Times, Issey Miyake “opened a door for Japanese fashion.” The story further described him as the “first Japanese designer to show in Paris, known for his origami-like designs, creating pleated skirts, dresses, and trousers that afforded freedom.”
CNN writes that in 1970 Miyake founded his design studio in Tokyo with early designs “skillfully blending East and West while using Japanese embroidery techniques and tattoo designs.” The story elaborates that during the 1980s he “began developing a new fabric that could expand vertically with hundreds of tiny folds.” By merging traditional methods with new techniques he created the signature permanently pleated garments.
Kuan Lin and Yi Chang of Vogue shared, “The death of the designer that started the careers of a generation of Japanese fashion masters, the Pleats Please collection will always have a deep impact on the fashion world today.”
Since Spring/Summer 2020, the brand has been led by designer Satoshi Kondo.
Banner photo via Instagram @isseymiyakeofficial.
