Issey Miyake S/S14 Men’s

With newly appointed creative director Yusuke Takahashi at the helm, Issey Miyake’s Spring / Summer 2014 collection was about fresh perspectives on colour and pattern at the core of the label’s DNA. Themed ‘Throw Open The Windows And Look Out At The World’, the designer embraced this season’s desire to celebrate masculine freedom – from an airy runway off the Place de Vosges, Paris.

Issey Miyake has a way of choreographing audience attention, directing lines of sight above and below natural eye-level. We are thus led out of physical spectator complacency in preparation for the youthful energy that defines the brand beyond its trademark pleating. This season, the show commenced with a symbolic opening of three windows, high above the runway.

Thematically explored, the glass panes were graphically reflected into looks that dabbled within a diverse colour spectrum. From a Mondrian-esque palette, to restrained grey, through chartreuse and magenta, easy silhouettes were a canvas for chromatic experimentation. Stained-glass shirts, blazers and summer coats became a second iteration of the window, layered against contrasting prints.

Then we navigated through bamboo stripes that bounced the eye around the male form. Tie-dye daybreak horizons spread flashes of white light against graduated blue and beige. Traditional batik techniques echoed dappled light reaching down to a forest floor through saturated filters.

The finale was a riot of tribal music, colour and models who couldn’t help but smile. We looked out into Takahashi’s vision of Issey Miyake – natural and human environments extruded through the pigment-insatiable mind’s eye.

Symonne Torpy