Issey Miyake: catching up with the man who pushes the envelope of fashion - Crossing, Boundaries - Interview

Interview, Nov, 2001 by Ingrid Sischy

IS: So let's go to the '90s. You were at the height of your career, a point at which many other designers would sit back and keep doing what they've always been doing; but instead you made a different decision--you introduced your prodigy, Naoki Takizawa, in Paris. [Takizawa is now the designer for Miyake men's and women s collections.] Tell us what led you to make that decision.

IM: Ten years ago, while I was putting together a book of my work from the '80s, and also as I made an exhibition called A-UN, I felt as though I was getting lost. So I took a backpack and went to Greece to travel around. I found I didn't need much, just underwear and socks and things. A few years earlier, in '88, I had started to make pleats from these technologically-made fibers. I began to think the concept might be good for fashion. I had to make a break again. I felt I had perhaps forgotten the life of the people, what they need. Because times had changed. I thought, Wow, this could be it--you can wear it, wash it, travel with it. And I saw that it was a marvelous thing for dancers to wear, because it holds its shape so well. So I spoke to a lot of dancers, and studied how they were wearing their clothes. Ultimately it led to the creation of the line Pleats Please. We didn't make them for fashion shows or anything like that. I said, "This is new. It's a new skin." I thought it was good for the people--th ey can sit down, they can stay neat, the fabric is easy to maintain, you can transform it from morning to night. Then in '93 I became involved in the production end of the fabric, because the prices were so high many people who wanted them could not afford the pieces. After 20 years I said to myself, "I'm finally in the fashion business."

IS: It was fashion on your own terms.

IM: Yes. At first some people said things like, "Oh, it's not for me. I have to be slimmer to wear that." But I was sure of what I was doing, that this fabric was a good thing for people's lifestyles. It's what I dreamt of doing in '68 and '69, something as simple as a T-shirt and jeans, but more widely used. I was very proud of it. I also thought to myself that people are always waiting for what they need, even if they don't know what it is. That's what happened with Pleats Please as well as my fragrance, L'Eau d'lssey. They were all waiting for something different.

IS: Understanding that is the nature of being an artist. And now there's a new boundary you've crossed. A while ago you gave up your role as the designer of Issey Miyake and handed the mantle to Naoki Takizawa. In fact, in the Issey style this move has just led to your being able to continue to push boundaries in new areas like your A-POC project, but still it must have been quite a decision to give up the daily reins that you had been involved in for so long. Now, as artistic director of it all, you ultimately oversee and OK everything that goes under your name--but you no longer helm your signature collections. How did you arrive at your decision?