Yohji Yamamoto revamps the Japanese wardrobe

Yohji Yamamoto: Between heritage and experimentation

For his debut Fall/Winter 1981 show in Paris, Yohji Yamamoto laid the foundations of the Japanese avant-garde, alongside Rei Kawakubo. However, their arrival did not generate the response their work enjoys today. The designer’s loose, black, asymmetrical and deconstructed silhouettes stood in stark contrast to the “Japonisme” that French people and Europeans had been accustomed to. With him, there were no “exotic” motifs, no bright colours… In short, a rejection of postcard Japan.

But Yamamoto’s signature can be found in the way he applies Japanese philosophy, including Zen and wabi-sabi to fashion. Irregularity, imperfections, frayed edges, but also in techniques, such as flat-cut coats and enveloping volumes… These characteristics are not mere aesthetic effects, but genuine ways of seeing and opening up new sartorial possibilities.

An intuitive wardrobe

For his Fall/Winter 2026-2027 show, the designer presented fluid silhouettes, many of them inspired by the kimono, yet freed from its structured forms. While tying was at the heart of his reflection last season, this time the garments follow the body without constraining it. They support a natural lightness made possible by the richness of his work on fabrics — cotton, flannel, jacquard, velvet, lace, knit… An intuitive and poetic wardrobe further reinforced by the presence of references to Hokusai, the great master of the Japanese print.

Should we see this collection as a form of nostalgia? In Yohji Yamamoto’s work, there are no obvious answers. For the finale, five silhouettes made their way down the runway to the sound of their geta sandals, the traditional shoes with chunky wooden soles. A suspended moment in which tradition and modernity face one another, celebrating the persistence of a poetic Japan at the heart of Paris.

All the looks from the Yohji Yamamoto Fall/Winter 2026-2027 show