portrait of a fashion genius

His name is better known abroad than that of the Emperor of Japan. 84-year-old stylist Issey Miyake died of liver cancer on Friday August 5. He was known all over the world for his very graphic clothes and a pleat that has become iconic. He was one of the first Japanese designers to organize a fashion show in Europe. It was in Paris, in 1973.

Issey Miyake has never been afraid to go against trends. He is the inventor of pleated, light, wrinkle-resistant clothing and has revisited Japanese folding, the traditional origami, in an artisanal way. A survivor of the Hiroshima massacre, Issey Miyake will keep from this trauma a desire to build using materials never seen in the world of fashion: wire, raffia or horsehair.