Y-3
REVIEW
COMPLETE COLLECTION
PARIS, October 19, 2003
By
Go, team! With sports-inspired clothes becoming ever more firmly entrenched in the every person wardrobe, Y-3—Yohji Yamamoto’s collaboration with Adidas—is practically a fail-safe proposition. For spring, the project hit its mark with a high-energy collection that went from simple jackets and warm-ups to sleekly sexy swimsuits.As might be expected from a line that celebrates the sporting life, the tops, trousers, and skirts were mostly kept lean, while anoraks and sweatshirts were oversized and slouchy, meant to be worn slipping off the shoulders. There were some specific references to track and field: referee stripes on maillots, for example, or plastic panels inspired by motocross boots attached to jacket sleeves. Mostly, though, Y-3 concentrated on making over generally utilitarian pieces like trim jackets and skirts with high-tech fabrics and sharp color combinations: black, white, and gray flashed with hot pink and electric blue.
Yamamoto’s sense of irreverence could be felt throughout. Logos were blown up to cartoonish proportions; men sported hot pink hoodies; a strapless one-piece sweatsuit was supersized way beyond the realm of the sporty. He also worked with Japanese artist Saeko Tsuemura on comic book–style graphics that were printed on tank dresses, fluid jersey pants, and generous wraparound leather jackets. Overall, it was enough to lure even hard-core couch potatoes into a shopping trip—preferably after a visit to the gym.
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