MILAN, Jul 7, 2008/ FW/ — Evisu was like a splash of cool ocean water in the midst of Milan fashion week. The brand, that prides itself in high quality denim, found inspiration from the seas of Japan and the journeys and adventures that have graced its waters. The collection showed two brands of Evisu, Evisu Heritage and Evisu Deluxe. While both lines where sea bearing inspired each took to heart a specific and historic inspiration.
The Evisu Deluxe line is a hand-crafted collection that expands on founder Hidehiko Yamane’s desire to create the perfect pair of jeans. Trained as a tailor, Hidehiko went to the extremes to create what he considered the perfect pair of jeans. Evisu Deluxe follows this enthusiasm through the detail and dedication put into the collection. For this season’s collection they went as far as hand-washing the jeans in the sea and drying them in the sun on the near by rocks. The inspiration that motivated the detailed washing was Kanrin Maru. In the winter of 1980 Kanrin Maru was the first Japanese ship to set sail to America. The mainly Japanese crew also carried one American officer and the Evisu collection reflects this influence by blending traditional American attire with Japanese history.
The Evisu Heritage line, while still taking inspiration from the sea, looked at a different part of Japanese history, the Tairyouiki (big fish flags). The bright colorful flags are used by the fisherman when they have a good catch, so that the villages know to prepare for a feast. Often pictures on the flag carry sea creatures, waves, rising suns and celebratory kanji. Evisu heritage used these images for embroidery and print, like large colorful embroideries, fish scale print logo’s, and even Tairyouiki written in two parts on the back pockets.
The overall show was light and playful. Shirts had a vintage feel with double neck yoke and bias neck bindings, techniques typically used in the 50’s and 60’s. Colors ranged from sea blues to buoy brights and fisherman earth tones. While Evisu may have played on a lot of historical and vintage ideas the collection was young and lively. With eco-conscious materials like cotton bamboo mixes and coconut buttons Evisu is on trend in more ways then one.
[LISA HELM]
Photos by Lisa Helm
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