Fashion & Leather Goods · January 25, 2024 Kenzo Fall-Winter 2024 collection channels sci-fi

Kenzo artistic director Nigo fused Eastern and Western influences for his latest runway show, presented at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF). These cross-cultural exchanges spawned the Kenzo Magic Galaxy, a collection inspired by references to the universe of science fiction.

Just as filmmaker George Lucas found inspiration in the samurai films of Akira Kurosawa, Nigo imagines original codes to invent a new vocabulary and a new fantasy world. Women's and men's silhouettes bridge two worlds, rooted in Japanese tradition while infused with details from faraway galaxies. A kimono coat look like a warrior cape, shimmering silvery and golden ensembles are fit for a space fiction heroine. A pattern informed by fifteenth-century Edo Komon kimonos is re-manifested as a star constellation in prints and embroideries. Throughout, the collection nods to Western military wardrobes in flight jackets, generous cargo suits and shearling jackets.

Women's silhouettes are nipped at the waist with judo belts. Men's gakuran schoolboy suits are crafted in technical wools and denim in red, black and khaki. Kimono constructions are re-contextualized in quilted nylon, denim, and tailoring and shirting fabrics. Patterns include a weave inspired by Japanese hakeshi baten firemen's jackets, interpreted in nylon, jacquards and denim. Accessories alternate between tributes to craft such as the KENZO Furoshiki bag, inspired by the Japanese art of wrapping, and futurism, like the KENZO Biker motocross boot.