娱乐英语新闻:Feature: Tokyo Fashion Week imparts notions of introspection, individualism, innovation

TOKYO, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- There's a certain frustration that' s becoming increasingly perceptible in Japanese society in recent times. It may boil down to simple politics and economics; with the once such high hopes for "Abenomics" to rescue the economy from the doldrums of recession and put a few extra yen in everyone's pockets, thus far amounting to little more than a cruel joke.

And with mounting public debt and a sales tax hike that nearly thrust the nation back into recession -- so much so that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has hinted that he is thinking about holding off on introducing the next levy in 2015 to 10 percent -- the fashion world here has answered back. And its creators, buyers, leaders and followers are somewhat disgruntled to say the least.

The 80s and 90s here saw the nation all about big foreign brands -- with Chanel, Burberry, Prada, Gucci, DKNY and Coach items all flying off the shelves like hotcakes, to be paired with cheaper generic items from domestic departments stores like Marui, Isetan, or, for the younger ladies, Shibuya's revered 109.

And even as little as five years ago, the Louis Vuitton Monogram bag, in any of its hundreds of incarnations was still a standard accessory and social signifier for women, as were Rolex watches for guys, but there has since -- as hinted at in some of the collections during the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo (MBFWT) here -- been a broad shift away from collectivism and pack- mentality-fashion and back to individualism and self-expression.

"When people don't know what to believe, be it politics, or religion, or whatever, they finally have only themselves to trust - - their own idea and vision of what is what," Anthony Badonde, 48, an East Asian-based buyer/stylist for prominent select shops in the region, told Xinhua.

"And this ideology is perfectly reflected in the fashion choices made by people in any developed economy. And what I've seen at MBFWT for next year's S/S collections here reflects this perfectly," he continued. "A certain disengagement, a sense of directionless and forsakenness.

"Firstly, I have to say that as a fashion week, this has been one of the most muted I've ever experienced (so far), and I've been to all of them except Milan this year. There are no big names on the runways and only a couple of designers remain with international cache that are still working out of Tokyo and haven' t escaped to New York or Paris," Badonde, whose first foray into fashion started in the East End of London in the 70s, styling an eclectic batch of up-and-coming punk and ska bands, as well as a new-breed of fashion-conscious, professional footballer.

"But what's been great about MBFWT so far, is that I am sensing a perceptible shift and its quite minimal and devoid of glamour, pomp and ceremony and this is why I love fashion in Tokyo -- it can switch from over-the-top Harajuku weirdness to Zen-infused creations of minimal delight, in a heartbeat, with elements one week adopted by all and rejected by an entire nation the next. Or, as will be the case for more fundamental themes and concepts seen for S/S 2015, adopted only if they impart freethinking, individualism and libertarianism," said Badonde, somewhat prophetically.

He highlighted some of the collections seen through last Sunday including Yu Amatsu's A DEGREE FAHRENHEIT, Atsushi Nakashima's collection and Toshikazu Iwaya's DRESSCAMP as, "addressing the needs of the fashionista who is looking to quite simply both retain and vent their individualism through a succinct, independent, yet modish narrative."

Our expert, while saying in no uncertain terms that fashion week here lacks the intensity, festivities and media scrutiny of those in New York, London, Paris and Milan etc., has its own "je ne sais quoi," and that certain designers here have their "fingers on a different, far more nuanced pulse." The details of which can truly be admired up front and personally during the brands' exhibitions and events that will run until late this month.

It will remain unclear whether Takafumi Tsuruta's offerings for next S/S, for example, were meant to be ironic or not, as the show itself was titled: haha. But either way, the Chiba-born virtuoso, a graduate from the venerated Bunka Fashion College, created something of a buzz among fashion insiders here.

"Well from what I know, 'haha' as Tsuruta uses the term can mean 'mother,' 'laughter,' or 'good fortune,' so from this perspective, I think he's playing with a lot of peoples' perception of the meaning and the designs themselves," Sara Nishi, a fashion major undergraduate at the Tokyo Designer Gakuin College, told Xinhua.

"His models included pregnant women and physically challenged people in wheelchairs, with innovation-based clothes to aid them, including pockets in the knees of pants for easy-access when seated in the chair, as well as a one-piece dress that zipped from top to bottom so it could by put on and off without the need for the occupant to leave the chair. Most notably, the pieces were very trendy and super-contemporary, which sends and important message of hope and equality," the 20-year old bright spark said.

Nishi went on to say that the casting of the models was also really unique, because rather than choosing leggy, blond westerners, Tsuruta cast a rag-tag crew of pregnant moms, disabled people and interspersed them with "regular people" that for all intents and purposes could have just been picked up off the streets moments before the show kicked off.

"As an audience, we could relate to each of the models: their restrictions, imperfections, or just sheer blandness. This, for me, makes the brand more accessible, and coupled with the simple yet functional designs of the pieces, Tsuruta's offerings are rather more than just a quirk," Nishi said.

Badonde, for his part, along with visiting and dealing with the global superpowers of fashion around the world, is also no stranger to far smaller gatherings in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand for example.

"Japan, or Tokyo specifically, will always retain its fashion pedestal as a mecca of fashion, but will, as the greats like Yohji Yamamoto and Junya Watanabe did and still do, have to keep innovating and pushing new frontiers to remain relevant," Badonde said.

"But for me, and as every one in my industry knows, fashion starts and ends on the streets. It only ends up in the stores 3- years later via the runways. From this respect, Tokyo is as relevant as ever, as the streets are just teeming with styles, themes and ideologies the world hasn't even seen yet," Badonde enthused.

"I couldn't wait 'till the last show on Friday ended so I had a whole weekend of people watching and street-snapping to look forward to in Naka Meguro, Harajuku, Omote Sando and Daikanyama, that's where I do my real work," Badonde concluded. "That's where the real art is."