Issey Miyake is having a bit of a moment in fashion right now as brands from across the world continue to reference Japanese style history. So it's unsurprising that Ysuke Takahashi was feeling optimism and joyful when putting together his S/S 15 collection for the brand. That explains those printed suited that suggested sunny blue skies, those cheerful pineapples that decorated sleeves and the quota of hot half-naked boys. While the collection certainly captured the mood of summer, the invitation to a 'journey through rampant jungles to white sandy beaches, diving into shiny emerald green seas in search of dark ocean bed mysteries…' (to quote the gushing show notes) was not totally welcome.
While joy and colour goes hand and hand with Miyake, the over zealous styling, which made looks feel just a little bit too beach party-ready, let the collection down by putting too much focus on this adventure narrative and not enough on showing off the pieces and techniques. But pick looks apart and that exquisitely printed outerwear that suggested the reflection of ripples in the sea shone, as did the great, easy knitwear. So we must put nostalgia aside. Takahashi has been doing a good job of making Miyake relevant to a modern audience, so while some of us may always gravitate to pieces that feel a little more old-school Issey, the bite of those fun, attention-grabbing pirana and jellyfish prints is sure to please buyers.
