The Comme des Garçons "Universe"

[gin soaked boy]

Just another example to illustrate that interviewing Kawakubo is an exercise in futility.

True.

Well, it doesn't say anything about her work, but at least it says something about her. And as she mentioned: "I am usually more attracted to the way they lived their lives rather than their actual works."

[nqth]

a very long text about rei kawakubo's creative approach (in relation to Arakawa's and Gins's architecture)

"In the following text, Erin articulates how Arakawa+Gins and Kawakubo’s creative methodology both embrace the idea that we don’t really know what a body is, and what it can do. Such a statement does not seem much, but as we have seen numerous times on this blog, fathoming this simple fact have tremendous consequences both in the creative and political realms. Kawakubo says herself that she does not want to make clothes; this can appear as odd for a fashion designer but, as explained by Erin, it needs to be understood in the refusal to separate the cloth to the body. In other words, Kawakubo does not design cloth as such, but rather shapes bodies without knowing in advance what they should be, thus denying the power of the norm".

http://thefunambulist.net/2014/03/13/the-funambulist-papers-51-dress-becomes-body-fashioning-the-force-of-form-by-erin-manning/#more-14592

[returningson]

Thanks for sharing, absolutely love the part about the Robe de Chambre store. Clothing store with no clothes on display - fucking great

Paul Smith: Do you have any children?
Rei Kawakubo: Yes, 425. They all work at Comme des Garçons.

[Faust]

Rei Kawakubo has a new protege working under her auspices. His line is Noir Kei Ninomiya. Currently it's only sold at DSM worldwide. The clothes are mind-blowing in level of construction and meticulous handwork. Here is an editorial we shot last weekend highlighting the S/S 2014. Also, lots of usual SZ suspects in there on the men's side.

http://www.sz-mag.com/news/2014/04/editorial-ophelia-2/

[rider]

incredible editorial. you certainly did Noir justice.
and very timely, I'm glad to see he is getting exposure, because out of the entire group of labels at dsm his was the one I thought was the most appealing when it came to combining texture, some hardware and simplicity. i found a simple a line dress (think wednesday adams) black, of course, with links and hoops all around the chest area, as if it was suspended. sounds complicated but oh so simple. the fabric was slightly rigid and had a ribbed texture, black on black. price was surprisingly affordable and so reasonable for the workmanship and thought that went into making it. some of the more elaborate pieces were a bit harder to wear but not in a metro setting. Rei sure can pick them...

[Faust]

Thank you, rider. I knew out of everyone here you would appreciate this. The rest of you can now go back to copping geobaskets.

[eleves]

Rei Kawakubo has a new protege working under her auspices. His line is Noir Kei Ninomiya. Currently it's only sold at DSM worldwide. The clothes are mind-blowing in level of construction and meticulous handwork.

Really great shots and styling. The line looks amazing, I definitely need to see the pieces in person. Is the skirt in the first few pictures a patchwork of different materials? I saw some of his other stuff a little while back and I love the vibe that these pieces in the SZ editorial give off. A little less dainty than what I've seen before and more chain-maily/battle ready!

[Faust]

More on Kei Ninomiya by Tiffany Godoy on style.com

[kuugaia]

Looking to dive deeper into the Comme des Garcons universe and wondering if you guys had any books to recommend? Not interested in only the clothes/photography/stores but also the business side of things. I've read the articles of Adrian Joffe at BoF which were great.



Currently it seems the Comme des Garcons (Universe of Fashion) is the most recommended I could find. ReFusing Fashion also seems not bad. Thanks in advance guys!

[Faust]

There will be a new book out later this year, to which I am contributing a long-ass-essay.

[kuugaia]

^ Awesome, looking forward to it. I'm sure you'll be sharing the contribution with us once it's published.

[underdog]

Really hoping the publisher is the same that did a recent poster for the SZ magazine release.... CdG is overdue for a true high water mark art book.

There will be a new book out later this year, to which I am contributing a long-ass-essay.

[Faust]

Really hoping the publisher is the same that did a recent poster for the SZ magazine release.... CdG is overdue for a true high water mark art book.

Unfortunately it's not Steidl. It will be a text-heavy book, not a coffee table book.

[eleves]

Unfortunately it's not Steidl. It will be a text-heavy book, not a coffee table book.

Nice, kinda excited about a text-heavy CDG book!

[Verdandi]

A short trip through the Comme archives, courtesy of Vogue Japan.