The designer mined ’90s influences and summoned a carnival-like atmosphere.
“In an era when information has become much easier to obtain globally, I’ve turned to localizing myself with my surroundings,” Mihara Yasuhiro wrote in his collection notes for his latest men’s and women’s collections. He interpreted this “localization” by taking inspiration from the Tokyo he remembers from the ’90s, when he started as a fashion designer. At the time, the Japanese youth fashion scene was heavily influenced by American casual and military styles, which in turn informed Mihara’s early collections.
For his latest offering, Mihara mixed ’90s influences with reinterpretations of about 25 vintage styles, which he called “new used clothes” and which included everything from shirts and pants to outerwear. The collection was rich in color and texture, with relaxed silhouettes and lots of layering.
For men, Mihara showed loosely tailored suits, oversized bomber jackets and vertically striped shirts. His women’s collection included slinky ribbed pants, long, brightly colored knit skirts, and glittery tops. He included plenty of loose-fitting denim, shaggy knits, and softly draped trenchcoats for both genders.
To complement the upbeat feeling of the collection, Mihara created a carnival-like atmosphere in a covered shopping arcade situated in Tokyo’s historic district of Asakusa. Prior to the show, geisha and “maids” handed out local street foods to the audience lining the street, and partway through a police car pulled into the middle of the runway, temporarily stopping the proceedings. When Mihara himself emerged from the car in a feathered wig and aviator sunglasses, it was clear that the distraction was all part of the show.
The finale included falling foil confetti, a roving Japanese street band and Mihara dancing on the runway. Overall, it was brilliantly chaotic in the most Tokyo way.