Amvai, a men's fashion media site that seeks out and promotes items that are "just right"—neither "safe" nor "irrelevant"—stands out for its members, the AMVARs, who are discerning and knowledgeable about everything. As part of a collaboration between Amvai and Isetan Men's Net, we conducted interviews with three designers from three brands carried at Men's Authentic on the 7th floor Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building .
The theme is "Exploring Fashion Masters Through Classic Books." We will unravel the past, present, and future of designers by exploring why certain books resonated with them.

Knowing someone's favorite books can reveal a lot about them.

Shibata, a resident of the upper floors of Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building who planned this theme, "Unraveling the Fashion Perspectives of Masters Through Classic Books," said, "These days, if there's something I don't understand or want to know, I immediately search for it on my smartphone. As a result, I feel like I've somehow grasped the search results, but in reality, it hasn't really sunk in at all (laughs). Even if I take a proper screenshot, I can hardly remember it later."
On the other hand, when a search tool is turned into a book, it makes more sense, including the context. Don't you get the feeling that the act of following the words is really imprinting wrinkles on your brain? he says.

At the Kenneth Field exhibition, Mr. Kusano mentioned that he bought a book somewhere that had a picture of the Ganges River in it, and he said, "That's right, I remembered that I wanted to go to India." It's amazing that something could motivate Mr. Kusano to that extent (laughs)...and to India, no less (laughs).
"Kenneth Field's appeal lies in its mix of American traditional style with various eras and regions. I wanted to learn more about Kenneth and Kusano's current work, so I commissioned this theme," he continues.

My first trip to India was to Jaipur, Rajasthan.

When I heard about this project from Ms. Kusano Shibata, I felt like I was being tested in some way (laughs), but choosing a book wasn't difficult. Today I brought "Test" by Takeshi Matsuyama (Fūjinsha, published in 1994). I went to India for the second time in February of this year, and that experience is still fresh in my mind. There are parts of what is written in Mr. Matsuyama's book that overlap with my own experiences, and it was also the reason I started going to India in the first place.

I went to India to order an original "block print," and when I went to a printing workshop that a local person recommended, the factory manager welcomed me, saying, "You're our first Japanese customer." When I showed him the print sample I had brought, he said, "Yes, we can do it, we can do it, it could be done in about a month if we're quick." So, after being shown around the workshop, I paid an advance for the printing plate and fabric.

A month has passed in the blink of an eye since I returned to Japan, and when I tried to contact them, they read my message but didn't reply (lol).


Ah, I thought, this must be my Indian initiation (laughs) .
Furthermore, starting with this baptism, he would encounter various accidents in India...

Page 2: India is truly a culture of the most different cultures. But right now it's fresh and fun.