• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.771-783
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• 2008

In this paper, I studied the trends of naturalism reflected on the fashion trends in 2000s, and the design characteristics of naturalism showed in modern fashions, based on the information about women's wear trend serviced by www.samsungdesign.net. The analysis was focused on the Comme des Garcons collections, and the results are as follows. First, in modern society, the scientific and realistic concept of naturalism was being shifted to nature-friendly and actual concept which harmonized with nature conceived to be important in environments. Second, the interests on well-being and LOHAS introduced the actual naturalism, and the naturalism became a prominent trend at turning times to 21th century. Third, the concepts of naturalism showed in modern fashions could be categorized into ecology, primitive, retro and exotic trends. Finally, the Comme des Garcons collections did not follow a passing fashion trend only, instead they formed unformalized natural silhouette and details in the view of new analysis and philosophy of themselves. The silhouette represented a natural sense in harmony with colors of simple materials.

• 한국생활과학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2008.05a
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• pp.141-142
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• 2008

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.787-803
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• 2017

The purpose of this study is to reestablish the innovative and experimental designs of Rei Kawakubo by considering and analyzing the flow on the avant-garde nature of her design collection from 1981 to 2017. Design trends such as the art trend, silhouette, color, and expressive technique showcased in Rei Kawakubo's collection from 1981 spring/summer to 2017 spring/summer were examined through precedent studies, books, internet materials, and the avant-garde expressive nature of her designs appearing in modern fashion. Additionally, this study considers the definition of avant- garde and analyzes the expressive nature of Rei Kawakubo's 137 works from the Comme des Garcons collection, exhibited in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. As a result of this examination, the avant-garde expressive nature seen in modern fashion was classified into the following themes: historicity, de-structure, exaggeration, intermixture, and surrealism. As a result of reclassifying these characteristics according to historical flow, the historicty, intermixture, and de-structure appeared in the 1980s, while intermixture, exaggeration, and de-structure appeared in the 1990s. More recently, historicity, intermixture, and de-structure appeared in the 2000s, and intermixture, de-structure, exaggeration, and surrealism appeared in the 2010s. The present study is significant in providing theoretical material for the more innovative and various design development in diverse domains while helping to define and understand the avant-garde expression through Rei Kawakubo's collection.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.139-148
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• 2010

As a designer, Rei Kawakubo had become one of the most influential woman of the 20th century. Comme des Garçons, which means "like boys"-what women in the early 1980s were least supposed to be-expressed criticism of the prevailing social construct of women and, importantly, of the very concept of fashion. The press had a field day with the so-called post Hiroshima look, with its aesthetic of destruction, poverty, and hunger and with its depressing mood engendered by the use of the color black. This research divided the change of design transition on Kawakubo's fashion by the three categories. The first category was experimental pattern, the second category was esthetics of omission and the third category was innovation of body consciousness. The costume messages through these design works of Kawakubo could summarize 5 items, punk sprit, beyond sex, reality, proposal of new body consciousness and representation of black.

• Journal of Fashion Business
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.113-131
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• 2014

This study aims to examine the background to the rise of Rei Kawakubo, a Japanese designer who achieved fame by suggesting the concept of deconstruction and recombination of clothes, and to look at environment of the time, the formative characteristics of her design and the Japanese aesthetic sense inherent in her design. As the method of research, collections that Kawakubo unveiled over the past 10 years starting in 2004 were examined, and a survey of the literature was conducted to describe the background of her growth and the Japanese aesthetic sense inherent in the design. According to the study, Kawakubo grew up in the ruins of a war, and went through a time of great tumult, when Western culture was mixing with Japan's traditional culture. She taught herself a method of creation involving the deconstruction of clothes, and their recombination. For this reason, her design from the beginning was inevitably focused on deconstructing clothes before they could be recombined. Through analyses of her collections, it was found that the formative characteristics of her design were characterized by asymmetry, incompleteness, humor and hybridity. Kawakubo created clothes under the influence of an ethnicity that was shrouded in individuality and a traditional aesthetic sense, and the formative characteristics of her design defined by asymmetry, incompleteness, humor and hybridity were closely related to the hybridity represented by Wabi (わび), Yugen (幽玄), Okashi (をかし) and Zakyo (雜居).

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.727-739
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• 2021

The purpose of this study is to present the objective evaluation semantic scale of avant-garde design. Apparel majors were asked to express associative vocabulary, design development, and final design intentions for the avant-garde, and the final 70 copies were used for analysis. The results found the item style was shown often in the order of dress, coat, and combination of shirt and pants. In order, the silhouettes appeared as atypical, complex, square, and triangular; the decorations appeared as feathers, frills, and round sculptures; and the idea method appeared as extreme, association, and removal method. In examining the relations of associative words and idea designs, the dress had relations with associative words such as 'peculiar,' 'futuristic,' 'fancy,' 'Comme des Garcons,' and 'deconstruction.' As for the relationship between the idea design and the expression image vocabulary, it was found that 'one piece' recalled 'huge,' 'volume,' 'abundant,' 'peculiar,' and 'unknown,' while 'coat' recalled 'huge,' 'big silhouette,' and 'padding.' In conducting the word cloud technique, the overall design showed the central keywords were 'huge,' 'big silhouette,' 'unbalance,' 'feather,' 'structural,' 'unknown,' and 'frill,' in order.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.626-641
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• 2016

Maximalism in modern fashion, which is contrary to the current fashion market that emphasizes functionality and practicality, is an important notion that has been expressed in a variety of ways through designer's unique sense with a mixture of experimental design. With such creative work that suits a trend in novel fashion design, Rei Kawakubo is a current representative of Comme des Garcons who has not only introduced deconstructivism and Japanese-style avant-garde to the fashion industry for the first time. Our research, thus, analyzed the characteristic of maximalism's expression based on the features represented in her collection. Firstly, Expandability is classified as a method of distorting parts of a body and a method of excessively overinflating the silhouette of clothing. Secondly, decorations are expressed in the other as blending different types of materials together. Thirdly, fantasy evokes a fresh and stimulating surreal sensation that may only be felt in an imagination by assigning supernatural and amusing expression to the garment. The forth, fusion refers to a creation of novelty from combining various types of elements and images. The fifth, experiment is unique trait that develops mysterious images, consisted of various details. The sixth, non-structure is different from an initial form of garment that maintains a bilateral symmetry. The importance of our research lies in proposing a fundamental data for development of creative design as well as in expanding a range of possible expression for maximalism, by analyzing the characteristics of maximalism seen in Rei Kawakubo's collection.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.62 no.7
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• pp.79-96
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• 2012

Creativity is a rising topic in the current society. The emphasis on creativity is valued as a key factor for success in all areas including but not limited to politics, economy, culture, arts and design. The field of Fashion design is probably one of the few areas that talk about creativity as a necessary quality to survive. The purpose of this study is to introduce TRIZ(Teoriya Reshniya Izobretatelsskikh Sadatch) as a theoretical tool to generate creativity in fashion design. TRIZ is a creative method of problem solving based on data analysis of outcomes invented by engineering. The fundamental concept of TRIZ has been researched through documentary studies, and practical case studies of product designs are used. Fashion design cases from Comme des Garcons by Rei Kawakubo are used to apply TRIZ in fashion design. Rei Kawakubo's design philosophy has been studied through fashion writings and visual sources in books, exhibition catalog, www. style. com and online shopping mall sites. This study has selected four principles among forty inventive theories of TRIZ: segmentation; asymmetry; consolidation; and preliminary action to apply to Rei Kawakubo's fashion design. As a result, TRIZ can be applicable to fashion design as a creative thinking methodology. By using the four principles of TRIZ, this study shows how Rei Kawakubo's design enhanced its efficiency and aesthetics of the products and was distinguished from existing items. It is meaningful to demonstrate a possibility of adopting engineering based creative methodology in fashion design to widen the perspective and to raise a question for the need of interdisciplinary creative methodology with traditional aesthetic approach in fashion design.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.222-238
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• 2019

This study is aimed at applying the philosophical concept of "$diff{\acute{e}}rance$" to contemporary men's fashion design, which could effectively show the shift in thinking. For the study method, the author examined the theoretical background of deconstruction and prepared the standard of analysis by organizing the concept of "$diff{\acute{e}}rance$," which exists at the center of philosophy. This study selected the three most popular brands: Maison Margiela, Comme des Garcons, and Yohji Yamamoto. The results are as follows. First, there is expression of perpetual reservation emphasizing time. This includes texture, patchworks, hems with ladder, and exposure of seam that expresses the trace of time flow and delayed delivery of immediate meaning, and the expression creates delay between major and minor and leads to consistent role exchange. Second, the trace of blank that emphasizes the space gives a visual sense of weight on spares with the intentionally granted space, as well as the space that is the trace of trace and creates a sense of depth through the direction of empty space. Third, the space created in the process of wearing cloth is visualized, the structure of clothing is deconstructed, and the movement from the process recomposes the shape of space and expands the definition that enables expansion of time and space. Fourth, the undetermined relationship expresses the border of time and space visually and deconstructs time and space. The approaches are mostly constructive, demonstrating an avant-garde form of clothes-wearing to show the non-form or imbalance condition.