Japanese Fashion Designers Research Articles

The Imagination of Japan

Abstract The arrival of the 21st century ushered in an era when fears and hopes crystallized around Japan, then perceived in the West as a country of new technologies. It was also seen as the nation of new fashion designers and in the 1990s Western media attributed a distinctly ‘Japanese character’ to the collections of Japanese fashion designers who stood out internationally. This article explores the encounter between the stereotypes of a Japan imagined by the West and the real clothing collections offered by brands such as Comme des Garçons, who exercised a major influence, in particular on Alexander McQueen and Iris van Herpen. In addition, this article aims to draw the attention of academic research to the unprecedented crossovers that fashion allows.

Održivost u modi - kreativnost iz prošlosti kao inspiracija za budućnost

Even before the emergence of the fashion sustainability movement, some European and Japanese fashion designers were active in inventing new creative principles. Key examples of such designers are: Martin Margiela, Rei Kawakubo, Yohji Yamamoto and Issey Miyake. They have created a completely new, different and personal style in fashion, as a consequence of exceptional aesthetic creativity. With their ingenious creativity and by pushing the boundaries in fashion design and artistic creation, they managed to create a basis for the development of modern sustainable fashion. Among the creative-experimental solutions available to a fashion designer as a strategy for sustainable fashion design, the creation of clothes without fabric waste ("zero-waste") stands out. The inspiration for such a creative-experimental design solution can be found in methods and techniques of traditional Japanese paper folding skills - origami, as well as in traditional Japanese costume - kimono. The introduction of this concept into fashion provides an opportunity not only to reshape the relation between body and clothing, but also has the potential to create clothing design based on sustainability and a new universality in the twenty-first century. Nevertheless, following the approach of famous designers, it can be seen that for success in sustainable fashion design is necessary to master the fundamentals of traditional and sometimes forgotten craftmanship, which could surely lead to further progress by upgrading one's own ideas.

Moda Tasarımcısı Issey Mıyake’nin Koleksiyonlarının Tasarım Ögeleri Bakımından İncelenmesi

Tasarım sözcüğü tasarı sözcüğünden türemiş olup bir konuda düşünme ve planlama işinin ilk evresidir. Çevremizdeki her şeyde tasarım görmek mümkündür. Doğadaki yaratılan her şeyde ya da insanoğlunun her ürettiğinde tasarım unsurunu görmek mümkündür. Tasarım üretilen ürünün oluşumundaki ilk basamaklardan biri olup her şeye derinden nüfus eder. Dolayısıyla tasarım üretilen her ürünün var olan her şeyin ayrılmaz bir parçasıdır. Yıllar boyunca yaşam biçimleri ve teknolojiye göre tasarlama işi değişmiş olsa da sürekliliğini her zaman korumuştur. Tasarım yapabilmek bazı ilke ve ögeleri uygulamaktan geçmektedir. Tasarım ögeleri tasarlama işinde kullanılan kuralları ifade etmektedir. Tasarım ögeleri tasarımda dengeyi sağlamak için ortaya koyulmuş bir takım unsurları içerir. Bu unsurlar; nokta, çizgi, form-biçim, doku, renk ve valör’dür. Bu unsurların dengeli kullanımı tasarımı estetik ve işlevsel yapabilir. Tasarım ögeleri aslında tasarımda estetiği yakalamak için oluşturulan bilgi aktarımıdır. Bu araştırmada tasarım ögelerinin giysi tasarımlarında nasıl kullanıldığına ilişkin bir çalışma yapılmıştır. Araştırmanın konusu Japon moda tasarımcı olan Issey Miyake’nin koleksiyonlarında yer alan giysilerin tasarım öğeleri bakımından incelenmesi olarak planlanmıştır. Moda dünyasında, Batı dışından kabul edilen ilk kimlik olarak Japon moda tasarımcılarından biri olan Issey Miyake’nin, kendi bireyselliklerinden çok, ulusal kültürlerini ve değerlerini bir bütün olarak sunmasıyla birlikte Paris’in moda dünyasındaki uluslararası ününe kavuşmuştur. Araştırmada, Issey Miyake’nin 1980 – 1985 yılları arasında hazırlamış olduğu koleksiyonlarından yargısal örneklem yöntemi ile her yıldan 1 giysi seçilmiş ve giysilerin tasarım ögeleri bakımından incelenmesi yapılmıştır. Ayrıca o dönemlerde modayı şekillendiren faktörler ve bahsedilen moda tasarımcısının tasarımlarına değinmek amaçlanmıştır. Bu doğrultuda koleksiyondaki giysileri incelemek için inceleme formu oluşturulmuştur. İnceleme formunda; çizgi, form-biçim, doku ve renk-valör tasarım öğelerine yer verilmiş ve giysiler bu bağlamda incelenmiştir. Araştırmadan elde edilen bulgulara göre Japon moda tasarımcısı Issey Miyake’nin giysiyi vücut formuna uydurma çabası gütmeden tasarım yaptığı, rahat hareket etme imkanı sunan , genellikle tek renkten oluşan ve asimetrik çizgiyi benimsemiş olduğu, ayrıca tasarımcının vücuda göre değil, kumaş formuna göre şekillenen tasarım anlayışı ile giysilerini tasarladığı görülmüştür.

Sartorial symbiosis or creative commensalism? Collaborations between Japanese fashion designers and Western apparel makers

In recent years the creative outputs of a cohort of Japanese fashion designers have engendered widespread interest in the country's street and sub-cultural styles. This article charts the trajectories followed by these innovators in the early 21st century, making particular reference to cross-cultural collaborations undertaken with Western apparel makers. An introductory section documents a 'design diaspora' operating in sites ranging from the British high street to the centre of the bespoke tailoring trade. The main discussion compares early strategies facilitating entry to European markets with those mobilised for survival during a period of retrenchment - focusing on the commensal aspects of encounters with Western fashion that have reiterated a global cachet and reinvented local credibility. The conclusion suggests that a reverence for tradition, craft and the 'rag-picking' abilities displayed by these designers has facilitated colonisation of commercial niches dedicated to the resuscitation of certain classic marques of sartorial culture.

Japan as fashion: Contemporary reflections on being fashionable

University of HyogoThis paper examines how Japanese contemporary fashion has been accepted globally, especially in the case of London. The popularity of Japanese fashion in the West started in the 19th century with kimono-style dressing gowns, but for the true design influence known as Japan-shock, we had to wait for the appearance of the avantgarde Japanese fashion designers who participated in the Paris collection in the 1970s and 1980s. A new keyword for ‘fashionable Japan’ today is kawaii, the notion of cute. This is intimately linked to street fashion and subculture and has been established and received as part of ‘cool Japan’ through the worldwide popularity of Japanese manga and anime. Moreover, it could be said that Japan is fashionable and the Japanese are thought of as fashionable people, but who is described as fashionable, and by whom? To reflect upon this statement, ‘the Japanese are fashionable’, as ideology, picking up the globally popular Japanese street fashion magazine FRUiTS, I would like to investigate the double meaning of fashion in the present and also what it means to be fashionable.

How China, Japan and Korea are perceived by Vogue USA in the last 10 years

This study analyses how China, Japan and Korea are perceived by the American fashion magazine, Vogue USA, to explore the relationship between country image and the fashion business. We analysed the quantity and contents of 164 articles published about these countries between July 1997 and June 2008. Seventy-eight articles discussed China, 54 were about Japan and 32 discussed Korea. We identified the salient aspects of country image for each and compared the similarities and differences. We identified two significant themes in texts and visual data on China: its fast-growing fashion industry and both its modern and traditional clothing item, the cheongsam. Significant topics on Japan included Japanese fashion designers, the unique street fashions and pop culture of Japanese youth, and the traditional aesthetics of the geisha. Vogue USA showed the least interest in Korea; no prominent image of Korean fashion emerged in the publication. Implications for further research are also provided.

Catwalking through Culture: Notes from the 2002 Smithsonian Silk Road Festival

This note examines the 2002 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, entitled "The Silk Road: Creating Culture, Connecting Trust," and focuses specifically on the work of the Central Asian and Japanese fashion designers. I explore how participants and presenters related to one another, considering many were strangers from different countries and social backgrounds when they arrived on the National Mall. The note demonstrates the contested interactions between the various designers and the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (CFCH), particularly between the Japanese group and the CFCH. I posit that the varying agendas of the participants, the festival's principal designer, and the CFCH administration challenged the larger goal of creating a unified pan-Asian identity.

Catwalking through Culture: Notes from the 2002 Smithsonian Silk Road Festival

Abstract This note examines the 2002 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, entitled "The Silk Road: Creating Culture, Connecting Trust," and focuses specifically on the work of the Central Asian and Japanese fashion designers. I explore how participants and presenters related to one another, considering many were strangers from different countries and social backgrounds when they arrived on the National Mall. The note demonstrates the contested interactions between the various designers and the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage (CFCH), particularly between the Japanese group and the CFCH. I posit that the varying agendas of the participants, the festival’s principal designer, and the CFCH administration challenged the larger goal of creating a unified pan-Asian identity.

Grounded Design Theory of Japanese Fashion Designers

The purpose of this paper is to formulate the underlying design theory of Japanese fashion designers by using the qualitative research method of grounded theory (Glaser, 1992). The researcher stayed in Tokyo for three weeks for the purpose of data collection. The method of data collection included in-depth interviews, questionnaire surveys and participant observations. Constructs for a grounded theory of fashion designers are synthesized. The design theory of the Japanese fashion designers is portrayed through the major constructs, namely, ‘aesthetic presence’ and ‘psychological satisfaction’

How are European and Japanese Fashion Designers Inspired?

This paper discusses research undertaken to identify and compare design theories of European and Japanese fashion designers. Various influencing factors, including historic, cultural, aesthetic and psychological influences, methods of generating ideas, and design process were analysed. Research questions which were posed were subsequently answered using a range of methodologies, and models representing design theories were formulated. The similarities and differences between the two groups of fashion designers were observed in each of the relevant, cultural settings. It is believed that the findings of the research can be used to further understand the relationships between causes, conditions, consequences and design process of fashion designers of different cultural backgrounds when creating new fashion.

East and West think differently? The European and Japanese fashion designers

This is the first of two papers in which the design theories underlining the work of contemporary European and Japanese fashion designers are explored. In this paper, four general, major influential factors are discussed; specifically, the historical factor, the aesthetic factor, the cultural factor and the marketing factor. In order to investigate the underlying design theories of European fashion designers, two European fashion designers with international reputations are discussed, namely, Christian Lacroix and Karl Lagerfeld. These design theories are contrasted with those of two Japanese designers, Issey Miyake and Rei Kawakubo. The images of their customers, sources of inspiration, and possible underlying design theories are analysed with reference to their contemporary work.