Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake dead at 84

Issey Mikae, the man who created one of Japan’s most iconic fashion brands, and was well-known for his signature, boldly sculpted pleated pieces, has passed away. He was 84.

Miyake Design Office reports that Miyake passed away from liver cancer on Aug. 5. said Tuesday.

Miyake is a key figure in Japan’s modern past. She became famous in the 1970s as a leading designer and artist, establishing a Japanese vision that was unmatched in the West.

Miyake’s origami-like pleats made crass polyester chic with their origami-like design. His apparel was also made using computer technology. His simple clothing celebrated the human body, regardless of race, weight, size, or age.

Miyake was so irritated at being called a fashion designer that he chose not to identify himself with the frivolous, trend-watching and conspicuous consumption. His trademark black turtleneck, designed by Apple founder Steve Jobs, was well-known.

Again and again, Miyake returned to his basic concept of starting with a single piece of cloth — be it draped, folded, cut or wrapped.

Over the years, he took inspiration from a variety of cultures and societal motifs, as well as everyday items — plastic, rattan, “washi” paper, jute, horsehair, foil, yarn, batik, indigo dyes and wiring.

He invented a new method of pleating fabrics by wrapping them between layers of paper. The garments then held their pleated shape in a heat press. His “Pleats, Please”, line was born from this experiment.

He made clothes that were more than the ordinary, reaching for the spiritual. However, he was not pretentious and he loved the T-shirt-and Jeans look.

Miyake once said in his book, “Designing is like an organism in which it pursues the things that matter for its well being and continuity.”

Influenced by Hiroshima’s experience

His office confirmed that a private funeral was held already and that other ceremonies would not be held according to Miyake’s wishes. Miyake kept his family’s private life secret, so the identities of his survivors are unknown.

Miyake was seven years old when the bomb fell on Hiroshima while he was studying in a school classroom. Miyake was reluctant to discuss the event later in his life. As part of an effort to have then-U.S. president Barack Obama visit the city in 2009, he wrote in The New York Times. said He did not wish to be called “the designer who survived the bomb”,

He wrote that he could still see “things no one should ever have to experience” when he closed his eyes. He also stated that his mother had died from radiation exposure within three years.

I have tried unsuccessfully to forget them. Instead, I prefer to see things that can be made, not destroyed and that bring joy and beauty. Partly because I find clothing design a modern and optimistic creative form, I chose it.

Laroche, Givenchy, early stints

After studying graphic design at a Tokyo art university, he learned clothing design in Paris, where he worked with famed fashion designers Guy Laroche and Hubert de Givenchy, before heading to New York. He founded the Miyake Design Studio in Tokyo in 1970.

Miyake was an instant star when he walked on the European runways. The cover of Elle magazine’s September 1973 issue featured Miyake’s brown top. It combined the Japanese sewn fabric “sashiko”, with a raw silk knit.

He was a pioneer in terms of gender roles, asking feminist Fusae Ichikawa in the 1970s — when she was in her 80s — to be his model, sending the message that garments must be comfortable and express the natural beauty of real people.

He eventually developed over a dozen fashion lines, ranging from Issey Miyake’s main line for men and women to bags and watches to fragrances. In 1997, he retired to dedicate himself to research.

Miyake was asked to design the official Olympic uniform of Lithuania in 1992 after it had gained independence from Soviet Union.