Tim Soar and Atsuko Kudo’s Latex Treatment

Tim Soar, with the help of latex experts Atsuko Kudo has refined latex into something that drapes and moves for his A/W 09 collection. Tailored latex jackets and matching flat front trousers that are fully lined means that the fetish connontations are taken down a notch. Atsuko Kudo who is known for her latex technical finesse has been building collections of dresses, suits, lingerie and accessories and this will be her first foray into menswear perhaps opening up a whole new niche. We speak to Tim Soar and find that These New Puritans are already onboard for Soar’s latex offerings…

Dazed Digital: What gave you the idea to use this particular kind of latex in your collection and to work with Atsuko Kudo?
Tim Soar: This was an idea that Jodie Barnes, my stylist, and I developed. We wanted a slightly dark/fetish feel for AW 09. And latex seemed the obvious choice.
Jodie had worked with Atsuko before, so she was top of the list. If you want top quality latex garments you go to Atsuko, it is as simple as that.

DD: What did you learn from Atsuko Kudo about the complexities of couture latex?
Tim Soar: Ah, well... that is it not like normal fabric. You have to approach it in a slightly different way. It sits and hangs in a very different way to woven fabric. You have to use totally different construction techniques. Finally, you can't have any ease in the patterns, that is you can push and stretch it in the same way as woven fabric, which makes it a challenge for tailoring, because tailoring is all about pushing, stretching and moulding the fabric. This is where Atsuko's great experience, patience and skill came in. To paraphrase Sandra Bernhart, without her it would have been nothing. Finally, an unexpected by-product of using latex for tailoring was how amazingly it moves. It shimmers like a very sexy jelly.

DD: How do you think tailored latex will be embraced by menfolk?
Tim Soar: The lovely model George from These New Puritans was asking if I would do some for stage wear for the band - George, if you are reading this, the answer is "Yes" - which was nice. In general, I suspect it will be, shall we say, niche…