The Comme des Garçons "Universe"

[Vinyl Only]

"I want to be forgotten" was Rei's very clever and contrarian answer to the question "What do you want to be remembered for?"
It seems almost like humility, what she's really saying is she wants the focus to be on the new ideas she proposes, plus the freedom and independence that she values above all.
She's also implying the power and extremity of her ideas are more than enough and that her celebrity is an afterthought, if it is to be considered at all.

[nakklevaar]

"I want to be forgotten" was Rei's very clever and contrarian answer to the question "What do you want to be remembered for?"
It seems almost like humility, what she's really saying is she wants the focus to be on the new ideas she proposes, plus the freedom and independence that she values above all.
She's also implying the power and extremity of her ideas are more than enough and that her celebrity is an afterthought, if it is to be considered at all.

Aw that clicks. Thanks for the explanation.

[Faust]

OUR VIEW ON THE NEW DSM IN LONDON

[Faust]

HOLY FUCKING SHIT - DROP EVERYTHING AND READ THIS!!!

ELLE on Earth
How a leading women's magazine ruined a once-in-a-lifetime interview with fashion legend Rei Kawakubo

http://observer.com/2016/03/elle-on-earth/

[rider]

That took some serious hutzbah.

[aussy]

Oh, to be a fly on the wall for that interview

[MetroBulotDodo]

HOLY FUCKING SHIT - DROP EVERYTHING AND READ THIS!!!

ELLE on Earth
How a leading women's magazine ruined a once-in-a-lifetime interview with fashion legend Rei Kawakubo

http://observer.com/2016/03/elle-on-earth/

That is great, instructive reading Faust, thanks for posting...

MBD

[MetroBulotDodo]

Here's something I wrote and posted on my tumblr -- some quick thoughts about the most underappreciated CDG collection of the last decade: SS 2011



Comme des Garcons’ SS 2011 collection was probably the most under appreciated and misunderstood of the last decade. The reason? In this collection, garments that looked like jackets were actually meant to be worn as skirts and jackets that were meant to be three jackets in one were, and meant to be worn only one layer at a time (see demonstration above) were improperly photographed and displayed for boutiques, both in displays in in photos. An example of the mistakes made: retailers unimaginatively showed the jackets as two smaller jackets stuffed into a larger jacket. This made the jacket appear unflattering and unappealing.



It is only when this collection is seen on the runway, and allowed to be seen from a 360 degree perspective, that the viewer is able to appreciate that the viewer had the opportunity to appreciate garments that were designed to be appreciated from every perspective -- not only that from the perch facing the runway. The jacket was the key trope of the collection. A large number of garments were designed so that with some manipulation, it became a jacket. However, when actually worn on the body, the jacket was meant to be worn as a skirt, as a single layer jacket with either one or two jackets hanging off the back and invisible when viewed straight on, or as a jacket, which when pulled apart, is meant to be worn as a stole.

below: the view, as seen solely from the front




It doesn’t surprise me that Comme des Garcons’ AW 2012 critically acclaimed (and wildly popular) “Paper Dolls” collection was widely interpreted as a critique of the exclusivity of the runway. For the SS 2011 show, only the few people who received invitations to the shows, or who had access to the market showroom, would have had the privilege of seeing the designer’s original intention for the garment. Those who were not able to view the collection as it moved down the runway and as it passed by one’s seat would not see the coats hanging behind the wearer, particularly as photos taken for fashion magazines would show only the frontal perspective. The lay viewer rarely had an opportunity to see the details if it were not on the front of the garment and, unfortunately, few understood the concept without having the benefit of those extra degrees of perspective or from a little bit of imagination.



Perhaps as a reaction to the missed details of the SS 2011 collection, garments from the AW 2012 collection imitated paper doll clothing -- the kind that you dressed a paper form by attaching the dress using paper tabs and required only a view in two dimensions to see the whole of the garment. In the runway viewing of AW 2012, the sides of the garment were held so that the silhouette could be seen and appreciated in its entirety by looking straight-on the model. By having the sides of the coats and dresses held so they would hang horizontally along the body, the collection could be appreciated in two-dimensions. There was nothing hidden or to be discovered by examining the back of the garment.



I was able to pick up a few items from SS 2011 from the rack, benefitting from the general misunderstanding of that collection, Even on the rack, jackets that were meant to be worn as skirts -- and I felt this was overly obvious from the proportions of the “jacket” -- were hung on the racks as jackets, leaving customers not acquainted with CDG likely to remain oblivious.




At least someone won that season.



MBD

[HugAndWug]

Great writeup for a wonderful piece!

[Krull]

Any advice/recommendations for CDG pants?

[Faust]

Any advice/recommendations for CDG pants?

You are not helping yourself here. Read the rules of this forum before you go drive-by posting.

[Ahimsa]

COMME DES GARÇONS AT THE MET

Our review and photo coverage.

[Ahimsa]

Book Review: Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons Art of the In-Between

[gawkrodger]

article from the Granuaid (which I admittedly haven't read yet, though I suspect it'll be poor)

https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2017/may/05/rei-kawabuko-fashion-met-gala-interview

[Faust]

John Waters on wearing Comme des Garcons, “It’s like being stylish in secret. You’re under cover. People always used to say to me in Baltimore, ‘That’s a shame about that coat.’ Or the press will write, ‘John Waters in a thrift shop find.’ If you only knew! I picture her in a cell, like St. Teresa, thinking of new ways to wreck clothes in a beautiful way. Her main thing is to horrify all dry cleaners. My dry cleaner is used to it now. But he used to say: ‘I didn’t do that! I didn’t do that!’”