For Spring Summer 2026, Mame Kurogouchi presented “Reflection,” a collection that traces Maiko Kurogouchi’s landscapes of memory and transforms them into garments shaped by transparency, fragility, and light. Shown as a meditation on recollection, the collection drifts between childhood sceneries and the history of Wa-glass, Japanese glasswork that flourished from the 17th to 20th centuries. The result is a season steeped in atmosphere, where ephemerality becomes a material language.
SPRING SUMMER 2026
The narrative expands on last year’s exploration of form, dissolving structures into fragments of memory. Melting ice, thawing rivers, and misted mountain ridges appear as references, each recalling the designer’s childhood in Nagano. These memories are merged with the artisanal character of Wa-glass, known for its tremulous transparency and evocative delicacy, qualities that informed both the construction and surface of the pieces.
Sheer garments define the collection, embodying translucence and radiance in fabrics that catch and refract light. Tailored suits and dresses shimmer with crystalline threads, echoing frost-covered landscapes. Shōwa-era patterned glass inspired jacquard jersey dresses and knits adorned with star and foliage motifs, while vine-patterned jacquard knits glimmer across silhouettes that link antique Japanese textiles with Western glass traditions. Marbled prints evoke the wavering textures of water beneath ice, creating a tactile memory of Wa-glass surfaces. Throughout, Kurogouchi balances relaxed silhouettes with sharp cutting, evoking the rhythmic sensibility of glass itself.
The color palette moves between dawn skies and fragile glass tones: pale blues, violets, yellows, and milky whites soften into pastel pinks and purples, each charged with a sense of nostalgia. A short jacket and skirt, hand-dyed in aurora hues at a Kyoto atelier, embody the shimmer of memory, while dresses finished with Stratasys’ 3D printing technology crystallize light and shadow into material form. Grey and beige sheer sets, together with wool triacetate dresses, recall the understated elegance of her grandparents’ era, restoring dignity to fragments of memory once thought irretrievable.
Accessories extend the theme of blurred recollection. Floral earrings, embroidered silk belts, sheer boots, and sandals with delicate flower motifs all echo frozen petals and melting icicles. Each piece functions as a small vignette, distilling the fragility and beauty of memory into wearable objects.
With “Reflection,” Kurogouchi situates fashion within an intimate dialogue of past and present, crafting a collection that lingers like light through frosted glass, at once delicate, elusive, and resonant with meaning.
