Fumito Ganryu said his primary objective through the design of this collection was to achieve balance. “I’m seeking to find that balance in the myriad of situations the wearer is faced with throughout their day… so they might be faced with instances where they have to be very stylish and then in the next moment be quite casual,” the designer explained through a translator over Zoom.
This simplistic sounding rationale was perfectly appropriate for a collection that looked in many parts straightforward—if only through these lookbook pictures—because it was intricately designed to create exactly that impression. Suiting was deconstructed and darted in sleeve and leg to create a loose, sporty semi-formality. Ganryu applied powerfully artificial color combinations to usually more muted organic prints to inject impact to easily-worn separates in Solartex; a jacket whose hood was zippable into a full face-covering blindfold was perfect for urgent napping. Similar impact was achieved in two-toned knitwear playing lime green against blue in recycled material and indigo denim pieces overprinted with white in order to create a ‘fade’ that darkens, rather than lightens, with use.
The prime pieces here however were the pleat-backed parka-shirt hybrids in plain materials or checks. These combined the menswear languages of the military and sartorialism to achieve garments that looked both interestingly unconventional and easily wearable. That’s a balance to be savored.
