Ensemble by Yohji Yamamoto, A/W 2000/2001, Courtesy Centraal Museum

The outfit is composed by a hooded jacket and a long skirt. Both pieces are in cashmere wool, and present different patterns, recalling traditional Indian designs; the finishings are in coyote fur. It was part of autumn/winter 2000/2001 collection by japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto.

The jacket is short and fitted, with no collar, and closes on the front with a safety-pin. The sleeves are made of a single layer of fabric, and on the left sleeve is a label with an Indian motif. For the jacket two materials have been used: a wool fabric with woven cashmere motifs in salmon, gray, green and red, and a silk twill in plain beige-gray. A silk and cashmere hood, lined with coyote fur, is attached to the jacket with four buttons. The full, A-line skirt is made from the same cashmere fabric of the jacket, and lined inside with silk twill. Between the two layers of fabric there is an inner layer, made of polyester, which makes the skirt flared. The waist is also trimmed with coyote fur.

The outfit was designed by Yohji Yamamoto, as part of his A/W 2000/2001 collection. The japanese designer joined together suggestions from different populations, reflecting on their clothing habits, linked to traditional techniques and materials; from India to Mongolia and North America, the influences draw trajectories and reflect on how people in different countries and contexts respond to the environment, keeping up with nature and its variations. The collection fits coherently in the creative view of the designer, who favours oversized volumes, thick fabrics and unexpected materials; it also seems to show how clothes can protect and, at the same time, be a symbol, declaring the identity of the wearer through patterns and cuts; these elements together recall peculiar traditions and customs of a precise place, and associate people, in their instinctive behaviours, across the world.

The object is part of Centraal Museum Archive. Discover more on the Europeana fashion portal.