Id like to begin with asking about your childhood in Saitama. What was your family like and what did they do, did any of them have a design background?
My mother was a full-time housewife and died when I was in my twenties. My father also supervises construction sites and designs marks. My mother’s father, whom I have never met, seems to have lived on a handmade boat in the outer moat of a castle. When I was a child, I was called by a nearby adult not a Tsumura, but a “child of a ship”. It was strange because I did not know.
What was your design like that got you awarded the So-En Prize in 1982?
It was a white coat with cord embroidery applied to the whole with the wiring of the electronic board as a motif. A punk image with a studded belt and a rubber sole. It was a work of art.
Before you got a job at the Issey Miyake design team were you interested in any other fields? A lot of your work is influenced by architecture, I was wondering if you ever wanted to be an architect? Why did you decide to get into fashion and what made you want to pursue it as a career?
When I was a child, I was inspired by the images that were popular in TV and movies in 1970, including scientists and the FBI. Although the times when fashion designers attracted attention as stars overlapped with puberty I decided to walk that path. I think architecture and art are also connected at the root.
What role did you play at the Issey Miyake design studio, what particular work did you do for their team? What are some important lessons you learned from Issey? How do you think working under him influenced the creative direction of Final Home?
I was involved with the design of all items related to the Paris Collection. Beyond class and gender. Clothes making seeks a new relationship between the body and the cloth, with lessons learned from opening up existing systems. FINALHOME opens a new page different from the concept of one cloth of ISSEYMIYAKE.
During the 1990s Japan experienced a major economic stagnation known as The Lost Decade, unemployment was at record highs and homelessness was increasing exponentially. Did this sudden societal change possibly influence the survivalist ethos of Final Home? Soon after the inception of Final Home you changed the I.d badge from saying “blood type” to “family physician,” to me this reflected Japans increased reliance on infrastructure, what was your reasoning?
FINALHOME started in 1994, but many problems such as global environmental crisis and economic turmoil have erupted all over the world. Japan also has many natural disasters, especially the impact of earthquakes on cities. here are special clothes that work in the local area but I think it was unsua; for clothes to cover both everyday and emergency situations in the city. The I.D tag is prepared for emergency however, there is a problem that personal information is exposed.
Do you feel the wearers of your garments have a responsibility to utilize the funcitionabilty of Final Home i.e does the users preference of wearing your brand as a piece of fashion vs function have an affect on the integrity of the garment or Final Home as a brand?
The motivation to wear is effective in both emergency and fashion, so there are various purposes to wear.
How do you feel about people not filling out the I.D jacket on your pieces ?
The issue of both protection of personal information and emergency relief, and the anonymous I.D becoming a fashion that expresses optimism was also assumed.
Final Home is often described as the wardrobe for the refugee of an apocalypse. What things do you see in the world today that could be precursors to a societal downfall? How can we as a society come together to prevent an apocalypse?
FINALHOME is intended to utilize the gap between the front and back fabrics, and emergency relief is one of the ways to use it. It’s important to use your creativity to train your wisdom to survive. I think our downfall is dangerous.
How did organizations you donated to use your jackets to help refugees and victims of natural disasters, do you recall any stories they told you of your work being put to use?
After the 11th, the evacuation centers around Fukushima Prefecture in the disaster area donated FINAL HOME and The color was reported to be well. Informed of the power of color before the function of the pocket, the power of color again was re-recognized.
How do you think politics and societal problems affect fashion? Also, how do you think fashion can affect politics and society?
Social issues change human emotions, so people who are sensitive and express them quickly are fashion leaders. I think that the impact will spread. In particular, the impact of SNS(sympathetic nervous system) is strong and the news itself is now. I think it’s fashion.
Whats your favorite apocalypse movie? What music do you like? Who are some of your favorite visual artists?
I was heavily influenced by science fiction, such as Blade Runner and 2001:A Space Odyssey. Music is everywhere. I’ve become interested in Japanese songs that I hated when I was a kid.
What are you currently working on artistically and what are your plans for the future? Do you plan to ever release or re-release more Final Home jackets? There has been a sudden boom of interest in Final Home amongst the youth of the U.S and EU in the past couple years, do you have any idea of why that is?
At present, I have devised a puzzle piece with a freely reconfigurable unit structure and I’m involved in the art field. Toward the Tokyo Biennale in 2020, we are planning to hold a shrine that uses fashion resources from Tokyo’s industrial resources in the precincts. In addition, there are plans to launch an independent new brand called INFINTEaHEAD. I hope to resume FINALHOME, but the trademark is managed by ㈱A-net and my wish is not heard. I know there is a resurgence of FINALHOME among young people. Whether its the global environmental crisis or natural disasters I’m not sure. I don’t whether its a response to all the harm or if its for fashion. Maybe both.