Miyake was born 22 April 1938 in Hiroshima, Japan, and studied graphic design at the Tama Art University in Tokyo, graduating in 1964. After graduation, he worked in Paris and New York City. Returning to Tokyo in 1970, he founded the Miyake Design Studio.

Issey Miyake lines and brands

Mr. Miyake "oversees the overall direction of all lines created by his company", even though the individual collections have been designed by his staff since his 'retirement' from the fashion world in 1997.

Issey Miyake - main collection line, subdivided into men (since 1978/85) and women (since 1971) collections, designed by Dai Fujiwara (succeeded Naoki Takizawa in 2006)

Issey Miyake Fête - colorful women's line that "draws on the technological innovations of Pleats Please" (Fête means 'celebration' in French) (since 2004)

Pleats Please Issey Miyake - polyester jersey garments for women that are first "cut and sewn and then pleated (normally, fabric is first pleated and then cut and sewn )" "to permanently retain washboard rows of horizontal, vertical or diagonal knife-edge pleats." (since 1989/93)

HaaT - women's line, designed by Miyake's former textile designer, Makiko Minagawa. HaaT means 'village market' in Sanskrit, the word sound similar to 'heart' in English. (since 2000).

A-POC - custom-collection for men and women. Tubes of fabric are machine-processed and can be cut into various shapes by the consumer. A-POC is an acronym of 'a piece of cloth', and a near homonym of 'epoch'. (since 1997)
me Issey Miyake - line of "exclusive one-sized shirts that stretch to fit the wearer" that are sold in plastic tube, named Cauliflower for the non-Asian market. (since 2001)

Issey Miyake Watches - men's and women's watches

Issey Miyake Parfums - line of fragrances for men and women

Issey Miyake maintains a freestanding store, named ELTTOB TEP Issey Miyake (reverse for 'Pet Bottle') in Osaka where the full array of lines is available.

21-21 Design Sight (a play on 20/20 vision) is a museum-style research center for design, constructed by Tadao Ando, that was opened in Roppongi, Tokyo in March 2007. The center is headed by Issey Miyake and four other Japanese designers, and operated by The Miyake Issey Foundation.
The Miyake Issey Foundation, founded in Tokyo in 2004, operates the 21_21 Design Sight center, organizes exhibitions and events, and publishes literature.


Awards

Miyake won the Arts and Philosophy Kyoto Prize in 2006.]
In 2005, he was awarded the Praemium Imperiale for Sculpture

Labels: Issey Miyake, Japanese Designer