Fresh off the new IM Men’s line that debuted at Paris Fashion Week over a month ago, Issey Miyake womenswear did not come to play. Headed by creative director Satoshi Kondo, FW25 showed us nonchalant confidence for the modern woman where you don’t have to reveal much of yourself to prove your self-assurance.
Starting off in typical Issey Miyake fashion, the show began with a dance performance that saw models take off and put on clothes on stage and freeze in unorthodox positions, showing the different forms and shapes that can be achieved with this new collection. As the dancers were showing off the stretchy attributes of the technical knits and fabrics, the show began without warning.
Titled “[N]either [N]or,” it really seems like the aesthetics of this show were really “neither here nor there” - it was everywhere. One thing was for certain though - it was a beautiful display of anti-fashion, making a mockery of traditional design and cultivating something truly immense from it. Dresses had pockets deep enough for models to fit their form arms into, there was excess fabric on irregular, almost unappealing, places to distort traditional shapes and tote bags were altered to be worn as tops.
There’s a certain level of internal confidence that this collection exudes when the clothes bulge out in a traditionally unflattering way. Take a look at the puffer tops with a t-shirt too small layered overtop that makes the puffy underlayer pop out at the stomach and arms, creating a silhouette that’s not typically attractive. The wearer of this collection simply doesn’t care about showing off her curves and daring skin, leaving the sex appeal at home when she gets dressed in this new-season Issey Miyake. She’s comfortable and self-assured enough to rock it and that’s baller af.
The final part of the show really rounded off what was already such a good collection with theatrical, ballooning silhouettes that would only be worn by the most confident of women and one that would never shy away from the spotlight. The dresses were grand (both in stature and in physical size), the pleats were striped and the colours were vibrant (except for the black, obviously).
It was a truly impressive show from Satoshi Kondo that got a deserved standing ovation when he came out after the final walkthrough. He’s not only doing the late Issey Miyake proud but Japan too - especially with the ideologies from this collection that reach far back to the country’s fashion pillars.
Featured images via Issey Miyake©
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