Junya Watanabe

Junya Watanabe joined Comme des Garçons as a pattern cutter in 1984, straight from Tokyo's Bunka Fashion College, and within three years was designing its Tricot knitwear line. Rei Kawakubo gave him his own label under the Comme des Garçons umbrella in 1992, shown in Paris from 1993, and Junya Watanabe MAN followed in 2001. His work turns on construction, technical fabrics and patchwork, and on collaborations that rework workwear classics with brands such as Levi's, Carhartt and The North Face.