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FASHION

FASHION; THE JAPANESE DESIGNER WHO PAVED THE WAY

FASHION; THE JAPANESE DESIGNER WHO PAVED THE WAY
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January 30, 1983, Section 6, Page 42Buy Reprints
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At age 44, Issey Miyake ranks as Japan's leading designer. Since 1971, when his ultramodern designs first appeared at Bloomingdale's in New York, his clothes have been stocked and sold in stores across this country, and his companies now generate $50 million in annual sales, worldwide.

Mr. Miyake's influence stems from his use of trend-setting Japanese fabrics. He was the first designer to use Toray's Ultrasuede, the suedelike synthetic. Similarly, his use of stretch fabrics has had a great influence in swim and active wear.

Born in Hiroshima, he studied design in Paris and was still living there when the student riots took place in 1968. He says that the riots had a profound effect on his thinking about clothes. And, certainly, his revolutionary shapes reflect this approach to fashion.

His search for ''democratization of clothes -clothes for everyone, not just a few'' has lead Mr. Miyake to say, ''I expect the people who own my clothes to discover for themselves where and how to wear them. My design is no design.''

For nine years, Issey Miyake has opened his collection in Paris, showing later in Tokyo. After his recent spring and summer collection drew a successful response in Paris, Mr. Miyake was interviewed about his views on fashion today.

Do Japanese women dress differently from Americans? In 1965, Japanese women were completely under the influence of Paris fashion. In the 1970's, ready-to-wear started in Tokyo. There was Kansai, Comme des Gar,cons, Yohji Yamamoto, Nicole and me. Both Kansai and I started to show to the public. Instead of doing it through department stores, because at that time the stores didn't understand the Japanese designer, we did our own show. I did the clothes and Kansai did the show. We expected 3,000 persons to attend our performance, but twice as many wanted to come. We had to do six shows because there were so many persons.

Now, most Japanese young women are wearing Japanese ready-to-wear. And I've stopped doing shows for the people. They used to say, ''It's like a sack of potatoes.'' Now they understand my clothes.

In Europe, Italian and Paris fashion belongs to the rich. In Japan, fashion is for the people on the street. Formerly, our rich people never accepted Japanese fashion; they only understood European clothes. Now, they accept European and Japanese clothes.

What is your greatest design talent? I make my own fabrics. It started out of necessity. I couldn't find any material in Japan for my very simple clothes. Now I work with two of Japan's most influential fabric companies, Toray Industries and the Asahi Chemical Company.

My patterns and textures are fundamentally Japanese; I've made modern versions of Japanese fabrics. What are your goals for the future? I now want to make clothes for the times. I'm working hard on Plantation, my less expensive collection. I see many people wanting comfortable clothes that are easy to care for. So many women say, ''I'm not interested in fashion. I want clothes to last for years.'' I thought that after the T-shirt and jeans, I could make clothes that are simple, interchangeable, no design, and change them with accessories. I have only two sizes and half of the styles can be worn by men. I use strong fabrics - cottons for summer and washable wools for fall and winter.

Where do you see new trends being set? New York. It's the most influential city in the world. It's international. I feel a direction there. I'm also very interested in how New York stores make shopping an adventure.

A version of this article appears in print on  , Section 6, Page 42 of the National edition with the headline: FASHION; THE JAPANESE DESIGNER WHO PAVED THE WAY. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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