Flights of Functionality at IM Men
Review of IM Men Fall 2025 Men’s Fashion Show
By Angela Baidoo
THE COLLECTION
THE VIBE
Unbound, Reformed Utility, Functional Flow
To the creative mind that works within the design studio of Issey Miyake ‘A Piece of Cloth’ represents not a blank canvas, but a chance to release unbounded creativity – according to the press release for todays show.
Titled ‘Fly with IM Men’ the show was one (similar to that of Jordanluca in Milan) where the performance at the end created just as much impact as the show itself. What was thought to be the last model leaving the runway was swiftly followed by an additional procession of a colour-blocked section where models then proceeded to reconstruct the original form of their jackets (demonstrating the technical wizardry that is forever embedded in every Issey Miyake piece, a fact that will be well known to the brands loyal fans) to show their versatility before detaching a large kite-like panel and running around the showspace as if about to take flight. And with the momentum they picked up they appeared to do just that.
Always embracing boundary-pushing feats of engineering, for fall 2025 the MIYAKE DESIGN STUDIO (MDS) team of Sen Kawahara (design/engineering), Yuki Itakura (design/engineering), and Nobutaka Kobayashi (textile design/engineering) developed a formulaic approach to the collection with outerwear that could be worn upside-down or transformed into a completely alternative silhouette with the unfastening of a few buttons; shirts, jackets, and pants made from large single squares so when worn they formed billowing draped shapes – and was surprisingly made from plant-based (sugarcane molasses) polyester; the ‘Wall’ series was a set of inside-out outerwear; then the appropriately named Heron series made of suede and featuring holes that one could guess were purposely engineered to increased the aerodynamics of the Ultrasuede garment.
The notes for the collection also spoke of another theme that has been working its way across the season, that of primitiveness. Here, the thought process was around how the human body has had a relationship with cloth since the beginning of time. Yet, in the hands of the IM Men’s team there is never the thought of being stuck for ideas on what to do with it. Not only do they consider form and function, but by integrating a layer of engineering within each collection we get a “new fascinating evolution” in the story of the Issey Miyake brand.
THE DIRECTION
THE WRAP UP
Each collection from the MIYAKE DESIGN STUDIO sets a precedent for the levels of innovation still to unfold in the practice of garment construction. It also throws out a challenge to their peers to produce more than just another collection, because a simple piece of cloth actually holds within it immeasurable possibilities.
