Tokyo Fashion Week: Show Reviews
Models.com traveled to the bright city this season to view the Spring/Summer 2016 collections ourselves and see what the designers had to offer. The common thread of modernity was woven throughout the diverse lineup and the results were certainly a visual sight to see. Take a look yourself at our special Tokyo Fashion Week S/S 16 collection report for a glimpse of the week’s most exciting shows.
Reviews by Irene Ojo-Felix & Rosie Daly
All photos by Masao Yufu for Models.com, except for Motohiro Tanji by Stephan Moskovic
Mintdesigns
Keita Maruyama
Unashamedly girly, Keita Maruyama made sure to play up bold colors, flirtatious prints, and ladylike shapes. At times Maruyama’s inspiration of nature and its organic elements this season was subtle in the embroidered and printed chiffon pieces; other times it was amusingly in-your-face with the maximalist ruffles and lace components. Make no mistake Maruyama’s high society woman was exactly that – and she really loved pink.
Sulvam
Teppei Fujita of Sulvam fame looked to Western Americana for his reinterpretation of classic raw denim, Old-West workwear, and cowboy boots. Studded, fringed, and dyed what could have been overwrought with stale design was stimulatingly stylish with an effortless vibe. Fujita, formerly of Yohji Yamamoto tutelage, had a craftsmanship that clearly showed the impact of the older generation. Yet, his fearless take on already established motifs showed an expertise in patterns and editing that was surprising to see in a brand so young. What was also noteworthy was the casting of the collection – a bevy of Japanese faces fully dominated the line-up for a meeting of Western aesthetics with Japanese cool.
Atsushi Nakashima
Atsushi Nakashima went back to the future with his offering for Spring 2016. Inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s novel “2001: A Space Odyssey,” the color palette of black, white, and red were molded into ath-leisure designs of a different realm. Pops of olive, gold, and silver were the space-like neutrals that gave it all balance. It was not your average sportswear with synthetic textiles like neoprene reigning dominant yet the styling was relevantly modern while looking into the days of tomorrow.
Yasutoshi Ezumi
Designer Yasutoshi Ezumi looked to the architect Frank Gehry for inspiration this spring and the outcome was a deconstructed showing with menswear influenced textiles. Trench coats, pin-stripe blazers, white button ups and baseball jackets were all dissected to look refreshingly modern than the workwear of today.
Hanae Mori manuscrit
Hanae Mori stands as the first Japanese female designer to be accepted to show couture to the Chambre Syndicale. For Yu Amatsu’s third collection for the brand, that important history fact and the influence of the West was apparent in the Spring 2016 collection. Amatsu thought about water, particularly the American Great Lakes, and used light textures, prints, and flowing silhouettes to mirror the bubbles, waves, and ripples of the tidal element. Swarovski crystals were woven into looks in the middle resembling the ice chips which later evolved into a glacial prism print. This all made way for the colorful bloom of Spring with floral prints sprouting at the end.
Motohiro Tanji
A 3D programming student turned knitwear design graduate, Motohiro Tanji brings a keen technical eye to the usually staid world of knit. This season he offered up a mostly monochromatic collection — punctuated in the middle by two entire looks in red — of intricately made clothing with great detail. But where other designers may have ended up in an over-designed danger zone of fussiness, Tanji’s knits were relaxed and effortlessly beautiful.
Yoshio Kubo
Menswear designer Yoshio Kubo brought plenty of drama to this season’s catwalk — driftwood and chandeliers lined the middle of the runway, which the models strode purposefully down to a backdrop of smoke and pulsating music. There was a menacing theatre to the collection, with the Arab Spring/Paris riots inspired head coverings and a dominate theme of military green, khaki, and beige colour palette. Mixed in amongst the hard was a soft romanticism consisting of vintage floral, nautical, and geometric prints. If this is what the revolution looks like then we say bring it on.