For his latest fall collection, Japanese designer Fumito Ganryu narrowed his vision to focus first and foremost on silhouette, only choosing materials that would create the unique shapes he had in mind. Colors as well were selected so as not to distract from the clothes — and, incidentally, the palette also reflected the colors of the Earth when viewed from space.
“I started to think about why I make clothes, and the answer is that they are for the people who wear them,” Ganryu said. “But thinking about trends and making what sells is not the same thing as making clothes for the people who wear them.”
This approach yielded unique silhouettes created through intricate pattern-cutting and asymmetric sewing. Drop-crotch pants with a row of pleats in the front are described by Ganryu as “future ninja” trousers, while a down jacket with loose sleeves, a shawl color and a simple belt fastener has a very East Asian look, although Ganryu said that wasn’t his original intention. “I just wanted to make a down jacket that you could throw on easily,” he said.
Ganryu also launched a new red-label line, which he mixed in with pieces from his main collection. The two offerings are in many ways very similar — they have a similar concept, use all of the same fabrics and colors, and even the pricing is on par — but the items from the new line have more obvious asymmetries.
“It’s like modern art — as if a child’s drawing has been translated into clothing,” Ganryu said.
Examples include an oversize suit jacket with an uneven hem that deliberately looks like it was buttoned up wrong, an open-knit sweater with two sleeves of drastically different lengths, and a scuba sweatsuit with mismatched ribs on each side.