Brand in Focus | Pt. 6: ISSEY MIYAKE PLANTATION (JP)

Visionary simplicity, radical comfort

At a time when prêt-à-porter clothing reflected power, career, luxury and extravagance — with broad shoulders, high heels and gold and glitter being the norm — Japanese designer Issey Miyake (1938-2022) launched the (rather oddly-named) brand PLANTATION. Established in 1981, PLANTATION’s visionary force lay in its radical break with everything else going on in the fashion world. This radicalness was achieved by taking a simple and humble attitude: to focus on values such as comfort and usability in day-to-day life, and to use natural materials appropriate for the different seasons - wool for winter, linen for summer.