There’s plenty of talk about ease at Fashion Week Australia, but in many cases it translates into belabored garments that appear as anything but simple on the runway. Perhaps the rest of Sydney should turn its attentions to the light, unfussy tailoring of Akira Isogawa. The Japanese-born designer can turn a complicated tiered ruffle dot dress into a cloud of cotton, and a simple pair of white boxer shorts into a polished summer staple.
It’s perhaps because he has such a strong sense of fit that Isogawa didn’t feel too strongly tied to an obvious narrative in his Resort collection. What began with woodcut-print dots and ended with a cherry red tunic over trousers wandered into menswear, Japanese tailoring, vivid florals, gathered-front dresses, and sheer micro-pleats—all well executed with a streamlined sleekness. What’s the connection between it all? Read as deep as you want, but in the end, these are refined clothes that will make the woman or man wearing them feel strong. There’s nothing better than that.
