Yohji Yamamoto: " I Hate Fashion "

[faust]

Well, I disagree...I don't know how familar you are with Martin Margiela's work but much of his output for his first 10 years or so was revolutionary. He was a pioneer of conceptual fashion, deconstruction, and the use of recyclage. I think it's easy to overlook his influence because a lot of his ideas very quickly came to pervade not just fashion, but low-end streetwear (e.g. arm warmers/unattatched sleeves and skirts-from-jeans were in large part his baby). Plus in terms of creative output MMM have pretty much just been spinning their wheels for the last few years.... But the early Margiela stuff was untouchable.

This is getting pretty off-topic though. Perhaps it's the subject for another thread....that I'm too lazy to start....

WORD.

All of them really had something innovative and fresh. But it is a topis for the Antwerp Six thread we have. If travolta decides to revive it, may be we can enlighten her .

 

[travolta]

^ i think i probably came off a bit severe. i do respect a lot belgian designers such as dries , and margiela, but i'm not as familiar with their concepts and their clothing. i guess i can't relate to them as much as the japanese designers i've mentioned. but do enlighten me in the antwerp avant garde thread

 

[Casualuxury]

well it shows his stuff is repulsive

 

[Johnny]

well it shows his stuff is repulsive

What? What does? Who's stuff?

Apart from that, good post.

 

[helena]

johnny

 

[softgrey]

Well, I disagree...I don't know how familar you are with Martin Margiela's work but much of his output for his first 10 years or so was revolutionary. He was a pioneer of conceptual fashion, deconstruction, and the use of recyclage. I think it's easy to overlook his influence because a lot of his ideas very quickly came to pervade not just fashion, but low-end streetwear (e.g. arm warmers/unattatched sleeves and skirts-from-jeans were in large part his baby). Plus in terms of creative output MMM have pretty much just been spinning their wheels for the last few years.... But the early Margiela stuff was untouchable.

This is getting pretty off-topic though. Perhaps it's the subject for another thread....that I'm too lazy to start....

hmmm...
yohji and rei were doing deconstruction at least a decade before margiela even started designing though...
so not exactly a pioneer...maybe more like a stagecoach driver exploring a new frontier that has already been 'discovered'...
although he did explore the aesthetic remarkably well....

**i really wasn't a fan of his recycled socks into tops...
some things just really don't NEED to be recycled...IMHO...

 

[droogist]

^ Yeah, I hesitated before putting deconstruction in there, because I thought someone might bring that up... To clarify, I think Margiel pioneered, er, reconstructive deconstruction, i.e. not just leaving things unfinished, but reforming or recombining them in unexpected ways. (I actually almost wrote "transformative deconstruction" in the original post, but decided against it, as I was afraid I would sound like a complete prat. But it's too late to be worrying about that now, isn't it. )

 

[VETE]

If he hates fashion, he shouldn't be doing what's he doing NOW

Maybe he was getting carried away in the heat of the interview...maybe he didn't like the interviewer...or maybe he did liked the interviewer....or maybe he really does just feel overly hopeless at the moment...

 

[rui]

It's funny, you hail Yohji as a true master and then you ask him to water down and sell his image the way Rei has done? In other words, it seems like you want to take something higher and bring it down. Why? Yohji has achieved what many commercially successful designers out there only can dream of - he will go down in the history books as one of the most innovative and important designers in the history of fashion. From what I've read, Yohji is very Zen in his mentality, very secluded and peaceful. He is around 60. Why should he subscribe to your PR view of fashion, and waste his time and energy on growing into a commerical empire?

I would never want yohji to water down his creativity to meet mainstream. I wish he would find it again, what he had in the eightes by giving us something new again. CDG has and is consistent on surprising us, with many different levels. Yes of course yohji will go down in history books he is a master of fabric and innovator of shape and design. I know for a fact that the NYC shop and showroom was in danger of closing due to the lack of patrons shopping at the shop. Its also interesting to know that Yohji corporation does not support the new york shop. THE ONLY SHOWCASE OF HIS WORK IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE UNDER HIS OWN NAME. that is also a shock. You have to reinvent yourself constiently to keep everyone intersted...shows have been produced at the Yohji shop to generate press and no one showed up! they were pulling people off the street to fill the space...its just not working. Um an the price points only put the most elite into the game. Its a difficult time for high-end avant garde designers when most of the world just wants to wear jeans and t-shirts...
So I am just holding on to hope that he will come back into the forefront of fashion and bring back the energy of art in fashion but do it to compliment this modern time that we live in because it is in that way that it will work!

 

[Bidwell]

I believe Mr. Yamamoto deals with modern accessibility brilliantly through Y-3 and continues to be creative within the aesthetic parameters he created through his signature lines. The fact he's said he "hates" fashion is perfectly normal for someone whose worked so long in the industry. He obviously means the grueling pace, the expectations, the superficial attitudes, the tedious side. What he obviously loves is still intact- style, grace and poetry.

 

[nqth]

An interview with Yamamoto

from parismode.tv

mms://vod.fr.nexint.net/parismodes/wms/en/high/2001255/yohjiyamamotothemaster255_281_e.asf

 

[Kindred unLtd.]

Oh my God, I *love* him. I hate journalists. I pretty much would be the same way. He's awesome.

The Tristan/Isolde reference = gold. lol @ minimalism. I didn't think about it like that and I champion the minimalist lifestyle so. No wonder my room's a mess.

 

[aldn]

I believe Mr. Yamamoto deals with modern accessibility brilliantly through Y-3 and continues to be creative within the aesthetic parameters he created through his signature lines. The fact he's said he "hates" fashion is perfectly normal for someone whose worked so long in the industry. He obviously means the grueling pace, the expectations, the superficial attitudes, the tedious side. What he obviously loves is still intact- style, grace and poetry.

Perectly stated!

 

[thehouseofdis]

While I agree that his men's collection, for me, leaves something to be desired, I agree with Alda about what Yohji means by hating fashion "fashion". Fashion is what's popular and "in style" it has nothing to do with "style" or design or art or history or elegance.

I hate fashion in the sense that it is so forced and then gets distilled through department stores, corporations and advertising. However, I love design, cuts, fabrics and the concepts behind the designers vision.

Y-3 is really just Yamamoto giving direction and a concept to a team of designers. The result is simple fuctional clothing with a modern influence.

 

[ShesElectric]

Yohji - hate is a very strong word but allow me to vent - I HATE HIM!
His ego is - omg - I can't even tell you... everything he touches apparently turns to gold. Right, the crap he sells for the price of a used car is just disgusting and outrageously overrated (not that all designers dont retail in that price range but YOHJI is a big no no!)

 

[marsmars]

He speaks his mind. Laced with ego. I guess there's some self-restraint.

I don't like his clothes either. I saw one of his collections and it was so dark and apocalyptic. Bleugh.

 

[PrinceOfCats]

He speaks his mind. Laced with ego.

Hate fashion, love money, love self -- Yamamoto Syndrome, like Tom Ford, but with avant garde bells on.

 

[Just_Liv]

hes very sensitive about music. :[

 

[user500]

an interview with Yohji Yamamoto:
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/01/03/talkasia.yamamoto/index.html

not new. sorry if already posted somewhere.

 

[capt.charly]

thanks for the link user500