A remarkable intellectual titan of contemporary fashion and high culture has passed away as multiple outlets are reporting the death of iconic Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake on Friday, August 5th after a battle with cancer.

A pioneer of the pleat and use of technologically-driven design, Miyake became a symbol of radical interventions in fashion. He was championed by photographer Irving Penn, Artforum, and many other art world mainstays who formed his early client base, which would later famously include Apple founder Steve Jobs.  

In an industry ruled by form, proportion, and silhouette, Miyake used a complex understanding of architectural concepts to design garments that were sculptural in structure and unrepeatable in their unique ability to convey movement and the fluid body. Noted as the first Asian designer to "storm Paris runways in the '70s," his work continues to transcend contemporary fashion. His research-based Pleats Please and later Homme Plissé Issey Miyake lines launched to instant critical acclaim and remained among the most sought-after brands in the high-end market. This commercial success was propelled by a highly-conceptual approach to materials he developed ingeniously with designer Satoshi Kondo, the fashion houses' artistic director.

Born in Hiroshima in 1938, Miyake studied in Tokyo and Paris before taking an apprenticing under Hubert de Givenchy and then decamping for New York in 1969, witnessing the nuclear bombing of his home city and the May 1968 Parisian student protests in between. It was there that he launched his first eponymous brand in 1971. 

He gradually built brand recognition in the years leading to the publication of his seminal title East meets West in 1978. A further breakthrough came with 1983's "Issey Miyake: Bodyworks" exhibition, along with continued innovation in the use of synthetic materials such as rattan, reinforced plastic, and polyester.

Over time, Miyake was a devotee of, and collaborateur with, architects like Frank Gehry, Arata Isozaki, Zaha Hadid, and Tadao Ando at different stages of their careers. In 1994, Miyake's collaborative partnership with textile engineer Dai Fujiwara led to a breakthrough in the way he manufactured some of his most iconic pieces. A collection of these works were later featured in retrospective exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art and National Art Center Tokyo.

Comments and posts across social media platforms echoed the impact and importance Miyake had in the fashion world, design, and architecture. Notable design writer and editor Diana Budds took a moment to point out the architectural influence of Miyake's commissioned retail store designs, and as she notes in her remembrance of the late icon, he was "a Designer's Designer." 

In her extensive Twitter thread, she showcases a slew of examples highlighting the architectural reflections of Miyake's work and retail spaces.

the architecture issey miyake commissioned for his stores was really incredible, starting with his longtime collaboration with shiro kuramata (who also designed perfume bottles for him) pic.twitter.com/VIRN2ZzA2p
— Diana Budds (@DianaBudds) August 9, 2022

"I gravitated toward the field of clothing design, partly because it is a creative format that is modern and optimistic," he wrote in a memorable New York Times op-ed in 2009. "I prefer to think of things that can be created, not destroyed, and that bring beauty and joy."

Issey Miyake was 84 years old.