Jun Takahashi and Undercover

The Jun Takahashi Undercover for Uniqlo striped tee that I was wearing from the previous entry has made me ponder about the Japanese designer. Although I barely know his collections I do see his name being touted here and there from time to time. I wonder what makes his collaboration with Uniqlo launched last month sell quite well (in Kuala Lumpur at least, judging by the only one piece of this grey cotton blazer left on the rails about last three weeks). After a brief research I think that I might have found the answer...

One of the campaign shots for the Undercover Uniqlo collection. 

Jun Takahashi has been garnering attention in his native country for quite some time, but he has only showed in Paris relatively recently, and subsequently, exposed his collections to the global fashion scene. Rei Kawakubo from Comme des Garcons was one of the persons who is responsible in catapulting Takahashi into one of the few recognisable cult labels we see today.

His first Parisian runway collection in 2002 took a new view on deconstruction - t-shirts and jackets were slashed, patched, layered and emblazoned with graphics. This all lead to a strong following for antiestablishment image amongst the young.

His way of styling the pieces together looks coherently cool. Looking at his AW2012 collection reminds me quite of Marni at H&M, roughly at least - layering, colour-blocking, patterns and a mixture of fabrics all prevail in both collections...

But both collections are so different, of course, and after seeing this visual feast of creative layering, tasteful colour combinations and fabric manipulation I might safely say that I am officially hooked to Takahashi's collections. I am very keen to see much more from this designer. Another Japanese designer to keep an eye on, if you haven't already.