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CommeDesGarcons 1999 RunwayFinale Overdyed Layered ConvertibleHalfDressSkirtCape

About the Item

As the key element of runway finale Looks 57 and 60 in Rei Kawakubo's collection for Comme Des Garcons Spring/Summer 1999 (see our photos of the Vogue coverage), this layered overdyed-purple twill convertible garment with back slit and bias-cut semi-transparent navy satin underlay was worn as a half dress over a simple mini shift. The additional iconic oversized safety-pin of the brand enables it to more easily fasten as an evening cape or wrapped maxi skirt for an A-frame silhouette. Kawakubo's pinned styling of the paneled garment as a half dress references traditional Japanese accessories and elements, like a hand-dyed obi or elongated sleeve of a kimono. The garment recalls the silhouette featured in her Fall/Winter 1996 highly-patterned collection (photo included), but with the focus here instead on the dyed finish that gives the twill a surprising purple cast in brighter lighting. As evidence of the overdying, the brand label turned the atypical color purple. The mysterious way in which this durable textured synthetic fabric was hand-colored is likely Kawakubo's contemporary twist on the revered Japanese manner of creating and using dyes, such as for artisanal hand-dyed jeans that have a similar texture. The two layers of the garment are attached at the collar/waistband and both sides, while open along the entire bottom and the top corners (see closeup). Like on the runway, the large loops formed at the folded upper corners of the essentially rectangular garment are intended to fall outward when pinned to reveal this bow-like construction, although most of our photos show them pinned flat to show the difference. We styled the mannequin In some of our photos wearing as a second underlayer a salmon-color semi-transparent Comme Des Garcons bias-cut maxi dress by Kawakubo from the following year's Spring collection, to clearly demonstrate alternative ways to wear the darker garment. Notably, we acquired the blue-tone garment from the sole owner of an ensemble in another of our listings for a navy transparent blouse/translucent skirt set from the iconic Spring/Summer 1997 Lumps & Bumps collection. She had used this cape to conceal her breasts while wearing the pullover blouse, which enabled only a sliver of her lower torso to be visible through the see-through net, which echoes the line of the asymmetric-seamed bias-cut skirt. Some of our photos show our garment styled this way as a cape on a partly legless mannequin to best show the semi-transparency of the blue underlayer. Please note that as this mannequin is backless the shoulder area when worn will be more rounded. While the size tag remains, it is overdyed in a purple too dark to read the black letter, which could be "S" or "M". The length from the collar/waistband to the longer underlayer is 38". We think this will suit any sized person, with the only restriction being the number of ways in which it can be worn. Since the garment was photographed by us with the safety-pin inserted in multiple ways, we had it dry-cleaned thereafter to restore the tight weave and smoother finish. We will include the metal fastener in a separate box so as to not make new holes before the buyer wishes to wear it.

Designer:

Rei Kawakubo Comme Des Garcons

Brand:

Comme des Garçons

Dimensions:

Length: 38 in (96.52 cm)Marked Size: M (JP)

Style:

1990s (Of the Period)

Place of Origin:

Japan

Period:

1990-1999

Material Notes:

The ensemble includes the multi-functional garment and removable iconic oversized silver-tone safety pin.

Condition:

Wear consistent with age and use.

Seller Location:

Chicago, IL

Reference Number:

1stDibs: LU3244220280542

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Comme des Garçons

Comme des Garçons is one of the world’s most innovative and trailblazing fashion brands, helmed by its inimitable founder, Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo (b. 1942), who has a penchant for breaking fashion and cultural norms. The only living designer apart from Yves Saint Laurent to have a retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, Kawakubo has permanently changed fashion with designs that challenge traditional ideas of beauty with a creative and transgressive exuberance.

After studying art and literature at Keio University in Tokyo, Kawakubo worked as a freelance stylist before establishing her own label in 1973, opening her first store in Tokyo in 1975. Kawakubo has since been instrumental in pioneering many concepts now familiar in contemporary fashion. One of her most iconic moves was her introduction of androgynous styles (Comme des Garçons means “like the boys” in French) with asymmetrical, twisted silhouettes that envelope the body. While she told the New York Times that the “basics of clothing lie in men’s fashion,” Kawakubo believes in the concept of humanness in clothes, such as titling her spring 1995 show “Transcending Gender.” In the 1970s, when color-blocking was the norm, Kawakubo stuck to her monochromatic color palette dominated by shades of black with uncompromising dedication, although with evocative and powerful use of red and white.

Comme des Garçons is also known for an often shocking take on fashion. Deconstructed tailoring, violently slashed fabric and sculptural shapes are some themes that run through the brand’s collections, but Kawakubo never explains the meaning of her conceptual pieces, which fall somewhere between art and fashion. Even though the brand has more commercial offshoots like PLAY, known by the iconic heart motif with eyes, the premier men’s line Homme Plus and the multilabel Dover Street Market that opened in 2004, the essence of Comme des Garçons remains Kawakubo’s otherworldly and undefinable creations, which are impossible to ignore.

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