Issey Miyake, who built one of Japan's biggest fashion brands and was known for his bold pleated creations and former Apple CEO Steve Jobs' black turtleneck, has died. rice field. He was 84 years old.
Miyake died of liver cancer on August 5, his design office said on Tuesday.
Miyake was part of a generation of designers and artists that defined an era in Japan's modern history and gained worldwide fame in the 1970s for defining a uniquely different vision of Japan from the West. reached stardom in
Miyake's origami-like pleats turned the normally humble polyester into chic. He also used computer technology on textiles to create apparel. , was meant to celebrate the human body, regardless of race, build, size, or age. You chose not to equate with what you consider consumption.
Again and again, Miyake returned to his basic concept of starting with a piece of cloth. Drape, fold, cut or wrap.
Over the years, he draws inspiration from a variety of cultural and social motifs and everyday items (plastic, rattan, 'washi', jute, horsehair, foil, thread, batik, indigo, and wiring). I got
He occasionally evokes images of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin, and collaborates with the Japanese painter Tadanori Yokoo to create images of monkeys and leaves in vibrant psychedelic hues. did.
He has also collaborated with furniture and interiors with his designer Shiro Kuramata, photographer Irving Penn, choreographer and director Maurice Béjart, potter Lucy Lee, and the ballet Frankfurt. .
In 1992, Miyake was commissioned to design the official Olympic uniforms for Lithuania, which had just gained independence from the Soviet Union. Became a star. His brown top, which combines the Japanese sewing fabric 'sashiko' with raw silk knit, graced the cover of the September 1973 issue of Elle magazine.
Miyake was also a pioneer of gender roles, commissioned by feminist Fusae Ichikawa to be his model in the 1970s when he was in his 80s, and his clothes were comfortable, authentic and natural. I sent the message that I have to express my beauty. Man.
Although he made clothes beyond the mundane and seemed to reach for the spiritual, he always endorsed the T-shirt and jeans look and insisted it was never overdone.
"Design is like a living creature in that it pursues what is important to its well-being and continuity," Miyake once wrote in his book. .
His office confirmed that a private funeral was held and that no other ceremonies would be held according to Miyake's wishes.
