Japan’s fascination with all things Parisian borders on the mythological; the City of Light is seen almost as a unicorn, a symbol of magic, beauty, and romance. For a fashion designer, showing here is the ultimate dream, a consecration like no other; so it was not surprising that, after a couple of well-received presentations, Beautiful People’s creative director Hidenori Kumakiri decided to stage his first show today in the tented garden of the Pavillon Ledoyen, a historical Parisian restaurant. But, unfortunately, he couldn’t be present; he fell ill just before the show.
Hidenori Kumakiri is an experienced designer with a cult following in Japan, so his capable staff bravely carried on without him. Backstage before the show, the atmosphere was busy but calm and collected. A spokesperson was on hand to explain the collection’s concept and inspiration which, in pure Japanese fashion, was as charming as it was cryptic.
The designer was fascinated by the dynamic between masculine and feminine; for Fall, he worked again around the concept, calling the collection Male/Female—the slash between the two words being of importance. It conveyed a peculiar meaning. Apparently, the diagonal sign was translated by the designer into a stylistic pattern of bias cutting, almost paying homage to the French couturiere Madeleine Vionnet, who mastered the technique with supreme allure.
The very Japanese cerebral, controlled approach was infused with a very French sense of sensual nonchalance; the ensuing marriage was definitely seductive, with a whiff of touching, extravagant naïveté. Tailored construction morphed fluidly into welcoming wrapping shapes, gracefully enveloping the body; the precision of elongated lines seemed to melt, softly draped and shrunken, and then let loose. Cases in point were trapeze-cut blankets suspended on shoulder straps, floating around the body like trailing gowns; elsewhere, a flowing velvet orange dress was cut asymmetrically, then softly draped askew around the waist.
The contrast between tight and soft, small and oversize, sharpness and roundness was apparent throughout the collection, which somehow read as a Japanese take on French classic staples. It seemed as if the designer was playing in the Japanese garden of a French château. He reconfigured a very Parisian trenchcoat, stretching it across the body in a tight wrap; he shrunk a black Perfecto jacket to childish, bizarre proportions. A très chic redingote was tightly fastened at the waist with off-kilter buttoning, its silhouette was slimmed down and reduced to such hyper-skinny dimensions it certainly wouldn’t allow a French diet of buttered baguettes or yummy croissants.
