Yuima Nakazato Fall 2025 Couture: Out in the Cold
After a trip to Finland with dancer Evgeny Ganeev, where they explored photographing naked skin outdoors in the cold, Yuima Nakazato decided to examine clothing's role of protecting the body. "This is the origin of clothing, because humans need to protect the body from the environment," said the conceptual Japanese designer ahead of his show. His pictures were blown up as giant prints for some of the tailored looks in the poetic collection, a study of contrasts and fragility.
"This ceramic armor is very fragile and sensitive, but it looks like it's metal and strong," he said of a chain-mail dress with an aged silver finish that clinked as the model walked.
More from WWD
The metallic look was echoed on Nakazato's ceramic jewelry and headpieces, which included alienating face masks nodding to his costume work and shell-like creations cupped over one breast.
Wool and metal chains were knitted together by hand, a further nod to fragility and force, while icy landscapes informed the color palette of his semitransparent holographic fabrics, in places cut into pieces and layered in three dimensions, gill-like, supported by wire and tiny fasteners.
Tailored pieces were sliced along diagonal lines, held together with zip fasteners. Vest-like panels were buttoned onto elongated tailoring, flapping freely, while plastron details enhanced the sense of protection.
As the models walked the runway, the central space was occupied by Nakazato and Ganeev. One by one, the designer seized four ceramic bowls suspended from the ceiling, tipping the ink within them onto the pristine white shroud that covered the dancer's body. As the stains spread, Ganeev writhed as if with pain, before rising from the floor for an emotionally charged finale, taking with him strips of the tarnished cloth that danced around his body, echoing the three-dimensional pieces seen on the runway.
Launch Gallery: Yuima Nakazato Fall 2025 Couture
Best of WWD
Sign up for WWD's Newsletter . For the latest news, follow us on Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram .
