Maiko Kurogouchi refines her exploration of form for Mame Kurogouchi Fall Winter 2025, presenting “Katachi,” a collection shaped by texture, movement, and structure. Building on past seasons, this lineup focuses on the delicate beauty of traditional Japanese lacquerware, translating its smooth contours and rich contrasts into sculptural silhouettes.
Fall Winter 2025.26
Kurogouchi approaches design with a sculptor’s sensibility, shaping fabric with a sense of movement and organic fluidity. The collection introduces garments that carry a soft yet structured presence, reminiscent of polished stones, kagami mochi, and billowing clouds. The down series, a key feature, fuses multiple layers into rounded volumes, creating an interplay of asymmetry, enveloping collars, and voluminous sleeves. Each fold and tuck emphasizes a balance between architectural precision and natural flow.
Lacquerware’s refined elegance serves as a foundation for these shapes, influencing how garments hold their form while appearing weightless. The contrast between fluid draping and controlled structure defines the collection’s approach to movement, allowing pieces to shift effortlessly between sculptural and wearable.
The collection’s color palette draws from the rich tones of Japanese lacquerware, layering deep crimson and scarlet against a foundation of monochrome shades. This contrast accentuates the silhouettes, enhancing their depth and fluidity. An asymmetrically draped jersey dress blends ceremonial elegance with everyday comfort, while a knit dress with undulating sleeves mimics the effect of paper lanterns, casting subtle shifts in tone as light moves across its surface.
Kurogouchi also plays with duality in fabric, a floral jacquard dress paired with plush velvet reflects the interplay of lacquerware’s dark interior and vibrant exterior. The quiet presence of sculptural white garments introduces weightlessness and balance, while bold strokes of orange inject an energy that recalls the vibrancy of daily life.
Inspired by the Suminagashi marbling technique, Kurogouchi translates the fluidity of ink on water into fabric. This centuries-old Japanese art appears in cocoon-like dresses and voluminous ruffled tops, creating an effect where patterns seem to shift naturally across the surface.
Botanical motifs remain central to the collection, appearing in embroidery, jacquard, and knitwear. These elements evoke the changing seasons, much like autumn leaves signaling the arrival of crisp air. The interplay of organic movement and controlled form runs through every design, reinforcing Kurogouchi’s ongoing dialogue between nature and structure.
The Mame Kurogouchi Fall Winter 2025 collection’s exploration of shape extends to its accessories. Earrings take on petal-like forms, echoing natural elements in their structure. Square-cut pumps and rounded ballet shoes continue the theme of soft geometry, while a new leather bag with neckline-inspired cutouts introduces an architectural touch.
