"I remember I was thinking about mixing different fabrics, graphic prints and soft porn images of women, and trying not to have any sense of what was tasteful, and then I was interested in doing all-over embroidery -- could I do that, you know, would it work?
In photographs, models and objects, the exhibition displays his fabrics, graphics, interiors, furniture, tableware, radio cabinets and much else.
The exhibition displays -- in photographs, models and objects -- his fabrics, graphics, interiors, furniture, tableware, radio cabinets and much else.
A designer of fabrics, graphics, interiors, furniture, tableware, radio cabinets and much else, he brought to his creations a vivid sense of civilized living with more than a touch of panache.
What made it more interesting for me was that they also understand the link between fabric, pattern, graphics and furniture".
This season, the collection combines the androgyny of modern tailoring with rich fabrics and graphic prints, the latter inspired by "the nostalgia and tenderness of a beloved photograph… with colours faded like the memories they convey".
In the collection, shown against a huge silver sphere, the Japanese elements were subtle and included '80s volumes, bossy-looking parkas in reflective fabrics and graphic sweaters with blanket scarves.
The utilitarian streetwear edge of his recent collections could be seen here in several cargo looks made in parachute fabrics, and graphic botanical print bodysuits, some traced with chevron patterns, that made the models appear as if they wore scuba gear.
Then again, in their form, they seem more intentional than usual, so that the colors, the fabrics, the graphics feel invigoratingly new and, at the same time, are not fighting with the sensibility of the brand or its designer.
With his wife, Susan Needham Girard, he owned and renovated three houses, including a historic adobe in Santa Fe, N.M. "What's really interesting about him is how he integrated fabrics, furniture, graphics, into interior design," said Donald Albrecht, curator of the Cooper-Hewitt exhibition.
