In March 2021, YOHEI OHNO exhibited its 2021 autumn/winter collection in a room in Shibuya, Tokyo. “The New Phantom” is the theme of the collection
I found some warmth in the new collection. Items are in friendly warm colors such as red, brown, and beige. This warmth stood out all the more because YOHEI OHNO’s past collections were on the inorganic and artificial side of the spectrum, aloof from daily lives of ordinary people. A knit dress, for example, has an argyle pattern woven into sleeves. A final touch like this has been given by hand, which creates the warmth that I feel.
From time to time, I describe YOHEI OHNO’s collections as neo-futuristic. This is not the future life that people today normally think of. Rather, it is a world that is not completely new but is somewhat familiar to us and gives us déjà vu. This world view originates from a formative experience that the designer Ohno had when he looked into the history and design in the past outside the field of fashion and encountered documents about techniques and concepts that are almost unimaginable today, which gave the designer a “timeless” feeling as if he were seeing the future. This is well represented in this season’s item that integrates a waist pouch with a concept inspired by a crinoline, a structure that holds out skirts used in the Western world in the late 1850s. Instead of steel and other hard materials used back then, YOHEI OHNO solely adopted stiff polyester to produce firmness and made it something worn over the skirt as contemporary adaptation.
In 2021 spring/summer exhibition, the brand presented to selected audience a dress series made of antique kimono fabrics. This series is now officially launched as 3711 Project. The project takes its name after the size of a kimono fabric roll which is commonly 37cm x 11m. Along with the main collection, YOHEI OHNO plans to deploy this series that highlights the value of vintage fabrics by transforming them into contemporary dresses.
Brand: YOHEI OHNO
