How memories fragment was the gigantic theme that Mihara Yasuhiro took on board for his Miharayasuhiro Spring collection. He had a deeply personal motivation. British stylist Bryan McMahon, who died at the beginning of the year, worked with Mihara for years. In fact, the designer called McMahon his mentor. “I come from the country of the kimono and the original street style,” he said. “Bryan brought classic tailoring and elegance to the brand.” So Mihara wanted his new collection to stand as a memorial to all their collaborations. Given that these included some of the most memorable menswear productions of the past decade, that promised something special, even more so when Mihara brought in fashion editors Kim Howells and Luke Day, two of the people closest to McMahon. So the collection unfolded as a patchwork of Mihara and McMahon, whose hat and beads accessorized some of the models.

Mihara’s sterling characteristic has always been the way his clothes can carry a story. They are aged—torn, laddered, frayed—in ways that suggest life-changing experience. The designer agreed that the natural status of the Mihara man is probably refugee. He said he felt like one himself. Probably McMahon did, too. That was in the clothes today: the double layers, with the top layer distressed to reveal the fabric below; the denims with the Freddy Krueger slashes; the tie-dyed knit parka with threads pulling; the pieces patched together to create unusual proportions. There was more to the patterns this season—leopard, paisley—which might have had something to do with McMahon’s own eleganza. It loaned the incongruous edge, which is another Mihara signature. And kudos as usual to the footwear, particularly the half-silver/half-suede desert boots.
—Tim Blanks
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