In the playfully poetic world of Kenzo, east meets west, past meets present, and imagination knows no limits. Founded by Kenzo Takada in the 1970s, and now under the watchful eye of creative director Antonio Marras, the house celebrates its 40th
In the playfully poetic world of Kenzo, east meets west, past meets present, and imagination knows no limits. Founded by Kenzo Takada in the 1970s, and now under the watchful eye of creative director Antonio Marras, the house celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, Marras brought pieces from the spring/summer 2011 collection to London to appear in the latest installment of the V&A’s Fashion In Motion series. Presented exclusively online by AnOther.
Takada’s arrival in the fashion capital and the subsequent democratisation of ready-to-wear, set the standard for the unique heritage of the house. Regarded for its vibrant colour palette and bold prints Kenzo collections are always a visual feast. “Kenzo is a very special case in fashion,” muses Marras. “Nobody else proposes as much optimism, exoticism and freedom.”
One of the highlights from the recent season, this collection fuses together the rich history of the house with the culture of Marras’s native Sardinia – traditional Japanese kimonos are decorated with embroidery passed-down by his grandmother, creating a vision of a Japanese traveller discovering the customs and clothing of Sardinia. For the V&A presentation, Marras restyled the silhouettes from the Paris show – covering the models in layers of fabric, headdresses and gloves in order to illustrate this vibrant cross-cultural marriage.
The inventive and eclectic spirit of the house is key to keeping the label moving forward. “For me, Kenzo is something that is timeless,” explains Marras. “It doesn’t have to refer to a specific time in history, but is something new that regenerates over and over.”
Text by Samantha Lim
