Takano Morikawa, who was in charge of planning and designing for the Paris Collection during his time at ISSEY MIYAKE, finally participated in the Paris Collection under his own name last year. "I've finally reached a point where I can create clothes that are truly my own," says the designer, and now the door to his own style has opened wide.

The true meaning behind "René Magritte," the theme chosen for this season.

One of the Surrealist painting techniques is called "dépaysement." This technique involves placing a motif in a location other than its original place to evoke a sense of unease. Examples of this include the melting clocks frequently used in Salvador Dalí's early works and the stone pillars in the countryside painted by Paul Nash.


Takano Morikawa's collection theme for this season is "René Marguerite." It's the name of a famous surrealist painter from the early 20th century, but Morikawa spoke with his head slightly bowed.

"I regret that my explanation was a little inadequate. I didn't use Magritte's works as a motif, and superficially, there's no surrealist image. I wanted to create clothes that would give the wearer a sense of surprise and wonder, and in my own way, I used Magritte as a word to express the feelings of illusion and unease that arise from connecting things that should never be connected."


TAAKK 's collection, which garnered attention last year, was originally scheduled to be presented in Paris. However, the runway show held instead at the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, along with a video presentation accompanied by a handwritten letter from Morikawa, received high praise from the media and attracted attention as a new era of fashion presentation. "I want to create an expression that only I can do," he says, suggesting that he is exploring forms of expression beyond clothing, but rather that everything is merely a resource for creating clothes.


"Fabric making is something I consider my life's work. The process involves looking at the finished fabric and considering what form would be most appropriate to construct it into. I check my vast archive and stock fabrics, and plan the fabrics in consultation with the factories."

The shirts, with their double-layered construction from the chest to the collar, and the MA-1 flight jackets made from incredibly thin, almost sheer nylon, fully utilize the fabric's characteristics. The material, with its gradually increasing transparency achieved by using a gradient in the weft threads, ultimately becomes thin and transparent like a celestial robe, yet retains a firm, crisp feel.




"The floral prints are photographs of withered flowers that were lying on the cutting table in my studio, which was closed due to the pandemic. They're somewhat cynical, like Irving Penn's photographs, but I felt they were a realistic subject that represented the times we live in."

The material, which transitions from linen to cotton, is such that even though it's a jacket, the hem is made of shirt fabric, allowing it to be tucked in. It's surprising how it was there from the beginning, yet somehow appeared without you knowing where it came from. This is the true essence of "dépaysement," and perhaps the keyword that summarizes this season.

What the officially launched Paris Collection brought about

She said she wore her mother's hand-knitted sweaters since she was a child. Around the time she entered high school, she learned to make clothes under her mother's guidance.

"I remember my mother making a pair of designer pants for my sister, using a pattern made from newspaper. I also remember giving clothes I made myself to friends, and they were happy to receive them. I think that's how I started to think that making clothes was fun. You could say my mother was my clothing teacher."

She laughs, recalling how it was considered "fashionable" to take a highway bus from Akita to Sendai, a round trip costing 7,200 yen, to buy clothes. They reminisced about the popular brands and select shops in Sendai at the time.

Even with graduation from Bunka Fashion College just around the corner, she hadn't done any job hunting. Just as she was resigned to being unemployed the following week, a teacher introduced her to a part-time job at ISSEY MIYAKE, and she was successfully hired, marking the start of her career.


"At that time, we were designing fabric with areas that would shrink and areas that wouldn't, so that when washed in a washing machine, the fabric would become three-dimensional and turn into clothing. I think the idea of how to transform flat fabric into a three-dimensional object was very typical of ISSEY MIYAKE, so it was probably adopted."

After leaving ISSEY MIYAKE, where he had worked for seven years, he established his own brand, TAAKK , in 2013. In the same year, he won the "Tokyo New Designer Fashion Award," and in 2017 he won the "TOKYO FASHION AWARD," followed by the "FASHION PRIZE OF TOKYO" in 2019, sweeping numerous awards. As a prize, he participated in Paris Fashion Week in January 2020.

"Initially, it was an unofficial presentation, but this year it was included in the official schedule. We've seen an increase in media coverage and contact from buyers. Isetan also reached out to us, which led to our launch this season. A promotion is also planned for spring."

At the promotion held from March 10th (Wednesday) at the Men's Creators section on the 2nd floor Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building , the designer himself wants to be on-site and interact with customers. "I'm thinking about how to communicate effectively. I myself want to make an effort to communicate," he said, appearing to be a new kind of designer, different from the old-fashioned type who lets the clothes speak for themselves. However, Morikawa laughs, saying that he was even more edgy until last year. But he realized that "being edgy isn't enough to communicate," and he believes that this opportunity to reconsider is only possible because times are changing dramatically.


"Until now, as a designer, I had too strong a need for recognition. The pandemic made me turn inward, and I think I was finally able to confront myself. Now I feel that my job is to honestly focus on whether the person wearing the clothes can have a wonderful day, and how happy they can be. For that to happen, the clothes need to evoke surprise and emotion. My biggest challenge right now, as a team, is to dedicate all our efforts to giving people who wear our clothes an emotional experience."

The interview concluded with some truly inspiring words from the atelier, which is not located in the heart of a trendy city center, but rather in a charming, old-fashioned shopping district along a private railway line. It's a down-to-earth shop with a live-in staff. The three-story building is bathed in low winter sunlight streaming through its windows. Morikawa himself uses the second floor as his home, but he is being pressured to move out this summer as the building is scheduled to be rebuilt.

"It gets plenty of sunlight, the shopping street has everything you need, and the transportation is convenient. I'd like to look for another property in this town next time. Minami-Aoyama? No, I'm not even thinking about it (laughs)."

The shopping street, stretching straight from the old-fashioned private railway station, was bustling with shoppers in the middle of the day. Morikawa's story would only last a little while longer amidst this chaotic backdrop. The very fact that a Paris Fashion Week brand had its atelier in a place like this was nothing short of surrealism.