Scene setting: The label’s Paris Fashion Week shows have always capitalised on the playfulness and dexterity of its pleated garments, interchangeable and malleable. Miyake created an enduring design icon when he introduced the industrial pleating technique in T-shirts before broadening the offering in 1993. Staged at the Pompidou Centre, the brand worked again with long term collaborator, choreographer Daniel Ezralow. The space was dotted with large, strip light circle structures that dancers dragged and rearranged along the floor. Gymnasts spun in large hoops to the jazz sounds of Dave Brubeck. The energy was bombastic.
Mood board: The classic pleated drop crotch trousers, all-in-ones, tunics and blazers were all on show in a kaleidoscope of new colours or printed in vibrant illustrations by the Japanese graphic design collective Goo Choki Pa. Dancers carried record sleeves under their arms, which then fell into backpacks. The season was inspired by the flagrant force of jazz music – the collection unfurled like a deconstructed track. Under the showl direction of Daniel Yvinec, each instrument had its own time to shine: first a group of saxophonists, then cello players, piano and then drums. Each instrument was pulled into and around the set, with dancers interacting and leaping through the air.
Best in show: Stand out was the Homme Plissé tuxedo and dinner jacket. Elsewhere, long Nehru collar cotton shirting was worn with longer line jackets. Clothes had a more painterly print. Triangular pattern zip front macs were printed in graphic squares. At one point the musicians lay their cellos on the floor, strumming them whilst laying on top – this unconventional vim perfectly sums up the improv attitude of the pleated separates. Mix and match clothing. Ease and freedom. The very nature of Plissé. §
