Fabric research is at the core of the Issey Miyake brand, and women’s wear designer Yoshiyuki Miyamae kept the innovation going with sculptural creations that highlighted new techniques. These included what he called polyhedral textile, which is fabric incorporating origami-style pleats. Like the show invitation — a circle that folded into a small rectangle — they were created using patterns based on mathematical equations, and given volume thanks to the house’s 3-D Steam Stretch technology.
The patterns, inspired by snow crystals, appeared on striking looks such as a gray jacket and pants with an almost abstract quality, like an Xavier Veilhan sculpture. When rendered in vibrant shades that included pink, red and purple, they were more reminiscent of ethnic textile patterns. For the finale, models emerged wearing mesh body stockings with large fabric belts. On cue, they began twirling as the fabric unfurled into multicolored skirts.
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Miyake may not be as aggressively cutting edge as fellow Japanese brands Comme des Garçons and Junya Watanabe, but the performance elements of the house’s shows — coupled with edgy live music by regular collaborator Ei Wada — always leave the audience on an intellectual high.