Kota Gushiken (1992) is to knitwear what Frank Zappa was to prog rock. “Does Humor Belong in Music?” asked Zappa back in 1986. “Take knit easy,” says Gushiken, the young 30-something Japanese designer who graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2016 and is shaking up the world of knitwear from the inside out as we speak.
For some time, “take knit easy” was Gushiken’s brand motto. He recently changed it to “knitwear for human beings,” which makes just as little sense. When he collaborated with Jamieson’s of Shetland — one of Scotland’s knitwear giants that’s been in business since the early 1890s — they first thought some of the designs he sent over were meant as a joke. A super cropped woolen sweater? A fully reverse stitched cardigan? And what’s with this jumper-ish scarf? Last but not least, his show at the 2024 Tokyo Fashion Week (titled “Orgnaseid Well”) blended comedy and live performance, featuring musicians and Japanese comedians Naoki Matayosh and Masao Yoshji.
All joking aside, Gushiken’s humorous approach to knitwear is widely taken seriously. While at college he interned at Christian Dior, Proenza Schouler, Christian Wijnants and Modeteca Deanna. Business of Fashion included him in the Top 6 Central Saint Martins BA graduates of 2016. And five years after starting his own brand, with the AW19 collection (“Is it the Debut?”), he won the Tokyo Fashion Award 2024.
Look at it this way: whether you’re into Gushiken’s experimental designs or not, they do make the knitwear pieces of some of your favorite designers look overtly straightforward, if not rather dull. Another merino crew neck, another cashmere polo. They’re must-have staples for every brand you know, necessary but often kind of boring. And of course, Margaret Howell masters different types of constructions, knits and fabrics — irregular spun Guernseys, seamless knits in undyed wool, etcetera. And Cecile Tulkens, Slopeslow, Auralee, Howlin and other new knitwear greats really excel at what they do. And some of their pieces even have their own well-considered quirks and oddities.
But these oddities mostly take place within the limits of knitwear as we know it. They’re not transgressions, wild yet wearable explorations of what knitwear could be — whether or not you want it to ever be like that.
Gushiken is not alone in this, of course. SHINYAKOZUKA — founded by another CSM graduate from Japan, Shinya Kozuka — and Camiel Fortgens toil in the same offbeat field. With the former, Gushiken shares a fascination for seemingly random, sometimes unfinished hand drawings. With the latter, a love for deconstructed edges, and exposed raw seams. For his own brand, he combines both sides through the kind of mastery that needn’t take itself too seriously in order to fully manifest itself.
A couple of weeks ago I reached out to Kota, and he kindly accepted the invitation to tell about who he is, what he does, how he does it, and what he’s up to next.
I know you originally wanted to go to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, but didn’t have the portfolio to take the exam. You then decided to create a portfolio during a one-year foundation course at Central Saint Martins. What was that early process like?
“At that time, I struggled not only with coming up with ideas but also with developing them into something real. For an entire year, I felt an indescribable sense of anxiety. Once, in London, I failed a project I was deeply committed to. For the final project of that one-year course I created a collection inspired by the film Bagdad Café.”
Do you still have any images of that collection that you could show me?
“I tried looking for the photos recently, but I couldn’t find the. They might still be somewhere at my parents’ house.”
The teacher in the CSM knitwear department was supportive of what you wanted to do, which made you decide to study knitwear, right?
“Yes, Sarah Gresty, who was the tutor in the Knitwear department at the time, really gave us the freedom to create our own work. She’s now the Course Leader for BA Fashion Design at CSM.
“The thing with CSM is that they’re focused on making your work as personal as possible. It’s a place that values original designs that can’t be found elsewhere. Given how many clothes and brands exist in the world, I believe this kind of education makes a lot of sense.
When I decided to study knitwear there, I didn’t even know the difference between knitwear and woven materials. I did sense that I would enjoy experimenting with a variety of colors and textures, which made me excited. Looking back, I was think I applied because I liked the work of the graduates. There were so many colorful pieces!”
Back in 2016, you were included on Business of Fashion’s list of Top 6 Central Saint Martins BA Graduates. How did that make you feel?
“I only remember I was really happy.”
Why do you think BoF decided to include you?
“I’m pretty sure it was because I created a colorful and versatile collection that incorporated humor while using many different knitwear techniques.”
What did your 2016 graduate collection focus on?
“It was called ‘Polyrhtymised [sic] Collection’. I attempted to express the concept of polyrhythm — an element of African folk music — through fashion, just because I really love the rhythm of African drums. Personally, I felt it came together really well. I was able to create a collection that I genuinely love — one I really poured my heart into.
Could you say a bit more on how you tried to express polyrhythm through knitwear?
“Polyrhythm is a unique rhythm created when different percussion instruments play their own separate beats. I was fascinated by how the same section of music could feel faster when you count it in 4/4 time and slower when you count it in 3/4.
“To express that idea, I tried a lot of different things. But one approach was to make each look in the collection completely different in design and style, reflecting the variety of rhythms.”
Kota Gushiken, the brand, presented its first collection in AW19. What could you tell me about the time between your graduation and the launch of your brand?
“After graduating, I was originally planning to work as a knitwear designer for a brand in Shanghai designed by another CSM alumnus, Sirloin. However, I was told that obtaining a visa to work there would take about a year, so I decided to return to Japan to pass the tie. Shortly after my return, I received a message from Isetan, a Japanese department store, saying: ‘If you create a new collection, we would be interested in selling it. Would you be interested?’. I immediately responded: ‘Yes, I’ll do it!’. And I spent the entire next year designing and working on that collection.
A year later, the Shangai brand informed me that they were unable to get me the visa. That’s when I decided I would start my own brand. As I was practically broke, I took a day job to make some money for about a year.”
What do you remember about the process of making that first collection?
“It was the first collection where I not only knitted pieces myself but also worked with a factory to produce some items. That process opened my eyes to techniques beyond my own abilities — like intarsia, which allows you to have bold, distinct blocks of color without carrying yarn across the back. It made me realize that, free from my own technical limitations, I could push my designs much further. That realization made me really excited about what I could create going forward.”
You won the Tokyo Fashion Award 2024 (congrats!). What kind of influence has that had on you so far?
“Thank you! This award included two showroom presentations at Paris Fashion Week, which took place earlier this year, in January and June [in the same building where Aviva Jifei Xue has its space] — along with flights, hotels, etcetera. While I was designing my SS24 collection, I was thinking of how great it would be to present a collection in Paris next season. I had no idea how to make that happen, though. But then I received a message inviting me to apply for this award — and when I did, I was selected. I’m incredibly grateful for that.
The Mona Lisa frequently appears in your collections. Why is that?
“After graduating from CSM, the AW24 collection was the first one I showed outside Japan. I wanted to introduce the brand and myself to the world, so I went back through everything I’d made, from student pieces to recent collections, to see what best represented my work.
“I chose the Mona Lisa as a motif in my graduation collection. As said, I wanted to express polyrhythm by showcasing a range of different rhythms, or designs. And I was inspired by Basquiat’s art, which is often described as a visualization of polyrhythm.
“For SS25, for example, instead of having a landscape in the background, Mona Lisa sits against a background of stripes. It’s a small tweak, placing the image in a different context.”
An important topic: socks. Knitwear can be a quite serious, even cerebral business — think of high-end Scottish knits and unaffordable Italian cashmeres. Your socks, especially, are rather humorous. What draws you to socks? Are they as fun to make as they look?
“I totally agree that some high-end knitwear has a strongly intellectual and serious side to it. But for me, knitwear is a symbol of freedom. It’s such a versatile technique that allows you to express anything with yarns — colors, patterns, stitches, textures, and shapes. I really, really love it.
“As you say, humor and a sense of playfulness are important elements for Kota Gushiken, the brand. And socks, of course, are knitwear too. So, that would be a straightforward answer to your question. There’s more to the socks, though. It started when one of our retail stores said they could introduce me to a sock factory and asked if I’d like to make some socks. And I said: ‘yes, please!’.”
Socks are knitwear too, you say. But I can imagine they come with challenges and opportunities of their own?
“Yes, yes, definitely! The machines for knitting socks and jumpers, for instance, are completely different. That’s why using sock-specific techniques makes it possible to create textures and effects that aren’t possible at all with jumpers. That’s why I find them really interesting, from a design perspective.
A final question: your designs are often inspired by found objects, from beer cans to ashtrays. Have you recently come across any such object that you’re planning to use for a future design?
“At the moment it’s not about things for me, but people. During the AW24 showroom in Paris I met a ceramic artist called Lisa Egio. She works as a member of Frizbee Ceramics [a platform founded in 2017, working between Brussels and London[. We showed our work to each other and we decided we would collaborate on something. We had some great discussions about ideas for jumpers, socks and ceramics over Whatsapp. I’m really happy with the pieces we’ve created together [e.g. the “Super Cup Kawaii” — LV]. It’s what matters most to me.”
I’ve been waiting on this dude to get more attention. Would love to see and feel his knits in person. Good eye btw.
great interview