“Shocking and unexpected things happened while I was designing this collection,” Chitose Abe reflected (through a translator) after her men’s and women’s collections hit the runway in Paris before fall. “I am grateful to have a simple, happy life, so I really wanted to give a united message of love to everyone.” She had thought about the word “uniform” and broken it down into “Uniform.” For her, the semantics worked both ways. She wore a T-shirt embroidered with ‘One Love’, with an icon of a hand with the index finger pointing towards the wearer.
There were more of the same scattered throughout the show. The idea of uniformity obviously has a different meaning in Abe’s work. She is known for having started hybridizing garments from different genres (initially from her home in Tokyo as early as the millennium) – a method that has influenced fashion ever since. This season, the mix of pieces created a continuous flow of outerwear, mixing puffas, trench coats, Fair Isle knits, tweeds and leather biker jackets.
Her credibility within the menswear scene has earned her collaborations with both Carhartt and skateboard and streetwear pioneer and artist Mark Gonzalez. Sacai x Gonzalez embroidered patches adorned many of her jackets, collegiate style, in line with the Americana trend that is in full force in this season’s men’s shows.
Sacai’s intricate silhouettes and exaggerated volumes defy detailed description. An exception was a single duffle coat, where the classic toggle closure simply shifted to one side – this looked great.
There was also a lot going on in womenswear, especially in twisted asymmetric knits, balloon sleeve silhouettes and vertically shredded zipper dress constructions; a preview of the show she will give during the women’s season that is just around the corner.
