Initial reaction:
This is the show we've been waiting for. In what seems to be this season's month-long obsession with minimalism and a lack of the conceptual, Junya Watanabe's latest collection brought with it a welcomed sense of complexity, and conquered new ground. We've come to expect nothing less from the elusive Japanese mastermind, but even for his standards, it felt revolutionary.
The look:
A Watanabe show is always difficult to dissect, but that has become part of the charm of experiencing his work. This season his models emerged wearing space age fishbowl headpieces created by Tomi Kono, complete with PVC silhouettes of hair – those in red reminiscent of the signature ‘do of Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, renowned for her obsessive repeated forms and radical art 'happenings' in New York during the 60s. As for the clothes themselves, prints that made their way across garments in cut out coloured plastic felt like the hypnotic futurist paintings of Giacomo Balla, come to life.
Pressure drop:
Lips were painted blood red, with mouths then covered with sheer tape – the show’s make up was the work of Dazed contributor Isamaya Ffrench, known for her hyperreal creations. It wasn't only the mouth that was restrained – several headpieces covered an eye entirely, the sense of the off key enhanced by the way bright shadow was daubed across only one eyelid. Set against the disjointed soundtrack, these elements of the show gave the feeling of a building pressure. Through a collection that presented an almost retro vision of the future, it felt as if it was ideas of the ‘modern’ woman Watanabe was pushing to breaking point.
