At full steam

GONE ARE the days when sheets of paper and plenty of pencils were the main tools of fashion designers. Today, technological innovation and experimentation are the buzzwords and nowhere is this more true than at high-end Japanese brand Issey Miyake, where mathematical ideas and tons of imagination also come into play. 
The brand is constantly introducing groundbreaking designs and the brand’s head designer Yoshiyuki Miyamae was in Bangkok last week to explain the latest – the “Steam Stretch Innovation” – as well as to celebrate the first anniversary of its duplex store at Siam Discovery with his exclusive capsule collection.
Famous for his pleats, the 41-year-old designer talked about and demonstrated how computer software is used to calculate the composition of cotton and polyester weaves, which contract into rigid structures when exposed to steam. The material reacts and turns into origami-like three-dimensional patterns called “3D Steam Stretch”. Put that like, it sounds simple but the process has in fact taken more than three years to develop. The fabrics are first tested as paper prototypes then examined carefully to ensure that the end garments can withstand constant wear and washing. Issey Miyake debuted the new technique for its spring and summer 2015 womenswear collection shown during Paris fashion week. 
Issey Miyake does the opposite of other labels in the pleated clothing process. “We tend to start from a square piece of cloth just like a kimono, which we cut into a dress and pleat later,” says Miyamae, who took over as head designer for womenswear in 2011 after working with the brand for 11 years. 

The design team demonstrated the process for Bangkok fashionistas and the media by cutting a piece of cloth into the shape of blouse. The two pieces were then covered, both front and back, and steamed holding an ordinary steam iron just a little above the cloth. As if by magic, the steam moulded the pleat into the fabric, permanently pressing the garment and maintaining its form. 
“It looks like origami but it’s folded by steam, not by hand,” Miyamae says. “It’s not created by a mould or pre-formed; everything is woven from yarn into a calculated fabric. We don’t want to change just the style, colours, or pattern but to find way that totally innovates.” 
Established in 1970 by Issey Miyake, the brand made its debut in New York in 1971 and has regularly participated in Paris Fashion Week since 1973. The philosophy has evolved and grown, but the brand remains focused on “technovation”, which is the melding together of technology and innovation. Its constant dedication to research, experiment and development, together with creative ideas, has allowed the brand to release many groundbreaking designs. 
Over the past 40 years, Miyake, now 79, has created numerous masterpieces, including the brand’s famous “Pleats”, which was introduced in 1989. The brand’s spirit has been passed on to many designers, both past and present, including Miyamae, who was behind the creation of the ‘‘Steam Stretch’’ innovation, which is used in the exclusive Capsule Collection. 
In addition to making the most of technology, Miyamae says the brand is constantly inspired by the wonders of nature. “The growth ring of a tree is so beautiful; the curves are very attractive and powerful. Nature is beautiful in a way that man cannot create. Our philosophy of clothing made from a ‘piece of cloth” has taught us so much about fabric and we have created a software program that takes into account the experiences of our people from many fields from the creation of yarn to the woven process. It is human imagination that creates the ideas and the ideas come from many departments – designers, pattern maker, yarn manufacturer and so on. Everybody is important. The brand continues to improve its technology, making its fabrics one of a kind and difficult to emulate. From ordinary materials like cotton and polyester, Issey Miyake programs the patterns thereby making standard material into something quite innovative,” Miyamae says.
“It is also takes great patience,” he adds with a smile. “We spend hours and hours thinking and doing. While experimenting we’ll learn something new throughout the process, which is worthwhile. Sometime out of a hundred pieces of cloth only five may succeed. The reasons are multiple. Perhaps the fabric is too thick or too shrunken and not suitable for making clothes. We are determined to create high quality and perfect clothing so our pleats have to withstand washing time after time.” 
Since the brand values free thinking that is unconventional and the spirit of innovative product creation, it is constantly searching for ways to incorporate the joy of life into the company's creations. The design concept challenges the conventional idea of garment making and strives to highlight the relationship between body and cloth, and also the space in between them. 
Miyamae also unveiled his inspiration |for Issey Miyake’s womenswear for autumn and winter 2017 – the aurora borealis, which he witnessed during a trip to Norway. 
“In the very dark night, the colours left me speechless. It is so beautiful but impossible to describe in words. The shades change all the time. I would like to interpret these images into my fabric.”
And in this, he has been successful, as the mobility of the fabrics allows the yarn to change colours according to the point of view of the observer. Miyake admits it wasn’t easy to achieve but has found success with luminous purple and dark blue dresses. 
“Our clothes are affected by the rhythm of movement and this mobility reflects both the wonders of technology and the creativity of the human mind,” Miyamae says. 

- Issey Miyake duplex store is located on the G and M floors of Siam Discovery. It was designed by Tokujin Yoshioka, who also designed the brand’s the store in London and Tokyo. Modern, simple, and sophisticated, the duplex covering an area of 500 square metres. 
- Seven brands are available –Issey Miyake, Issey Miyake Men, Pleats Please, Homme Plisse, me, Bao Bao and 123 5.