Watanabe, Junya

Watanabe, Junya, 1961–, Japanese fashion designer, b. Fukushima. He apprenticed at Rei Kawakubo's Comme des Garçons (1984), where he became a knitwear and menswear designer. Watanabe introduced his own line under Comme des Garçons in 1992, and presented his first womenswear show in Paris the following year. Though he has drawn on trench coats, army fatigues, sneakers, and biker jackets for inspiration, his use of sculptural, geometric shapes, folded fabric, and synthetic and technical materials can give his creations a futuristic techno look.

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