Chitose Abe of sacai has been invited to guest editor of A MAGAZINE CURATED BY for 25th issue. Chitose Abe, the founder and designer of the cult Japanese label, has called upon her inner circle of friends, family and artistic collaborators to contribute cultural and creative content across the 200 page magazine.
Proposing a radical ultramarine blue cover in both English and Japanese, a magazine curated by sacai explores the world of community and high concept behind sacai, from an international series of #sacaiTHEpeople portraits from Tokyo to LA, to commissioned projects by chefs, industrial designers, architects, artists, writers and business analysts. From the material concerns of minimalist architecture and upcycled industrial design to the intangible possibilities of CGI products and A.I. fashion reporting, Abe has channelled sacai’s collaborative spirit into a profoundly contemporary document that approaches her brand pillars of hybridity and ‘stability and betrayal’ in myriad ways.
projects of note include:
– An international portfolio of sacai’s notable friends and community photographed in their home cities by a roster of prestigious photographers wearing their own sacai collections. Subjects of note include Rashida Jones, Shioli Kutsuna, Edison Chen and Shupei Qin, Dr Woo, Yusuke Kubozuka, Michel Gaubert, Karl Templer, Sarah Andelman, Tariq ‘Black Thought’ Trotter of The Roots.
– Australian supermodel Julia Nobis documented by Craig McDean and styled by Karl Templer in an Eadweard Muybridge-inspired fashion story photographed in the streets of NYC ft. the sacai Autumn Winter 2023 collection and the Cartier Trinity for Chitose Abe of sacai jewellery collection. Every issue features a special edition gloss photo insert of this portfolio.
– In collaboration with Japanese architecture title Too Much Magazine, an exploration of sacai’s links to architecture, with in-depth interviews with famed Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto and the designer Yusuke Seki, each responsible for large-scale renovations of sacai’s Aoyama boutique.
– An homage to the late conceptual artist Lawrence Weiner by curator Hans Ulrich Obrist, in a new interview and historical transcriptions. Weiner collaborated with sacai on the label’s Spring Summer 2018 collection.
– The saCOOKBOOK: a trilogy of food stories ft. concepts and dishes created for the issue by the Japanese ‘wagashi’ masters Toraya, the Michelin-starred chef Yoshihiro Narisawa, and the Harlem food collective Ghetto Gastro.
– Opening the issue, an unprecedented interview with Chitose Abe and sacai creative advisor Daisuke Gemma by Josephine Creighton, a Tokyo-based counsellor, approaches the pair’s creative and professional collaboration from a psychological standpoint.
– Executed by Harvard Business School graduate students Shawn Horvath and Stephanie Fei, an in-depth business case study and market analysis of the evolution of the Nike x sacai footwear and apparel collaboration.
– Aligning the worlds of dance and fashion, the Japanese photographer ROLLSWYZE captures award-winning beat dancer THE D SoraKi dancing in the streets of Shinjuku, Tokyo wearing the voluminous creations of sacai, including recent collaborative designs with Carhartt WIP and Moncler.
selected contributors include:
CHIKASHI SUZUKI, CRAIG MCDEAN, DAISUKE GEMMA, DANIEL ARNOLD, DR WOO, EDISON CHEN, GELCHOP, GHETTO GASTRO, HANK WILLIS THOMAS, HANS ULRICH OBRIST, JACK PIERSON, JEAN TOUITOU, JOAQUIN LAGUINGE, KARL TEMPLER, KATSU NAITO, KEITH OSHIRO, KOHEI KAWATANI, LAWRENCE WEINER, MARVIN LEUVREY, MICHEL GAUBERT, NOUA UNU STUDIO, PABLO ZULETO ZAHR, PICZO, RASHIDA JONES, ROLLSWYZE, RORY VAN MILLINGEN, SARAH ANDELMAN, SHIOLI KUTSUNA, SHUPEI QIN, SOU FUJIMOTO, TAKASHI HOMMA, TARIQ ‘BLACK THOUGHT’ TROTTER, THE D SORAKI, TORAYA, VINCE AUNG, YOSHI TSUJIMURA, YOSHIHIRO NARISAWA, YOSUKE KUBOZUKA, YUSUKE SEKI
about sacai
sacai incorporates the idea of hybridization through juxtapositions of contrasting textures of fabrics, such as knits with super fine wovens and the usage of techniques based on reinterpretations of patterns of the garment, transforming the pieces into unexpected shapes and silhouettes.
While her collections may appear to be about femininity, Abe’s interest is in creating clothes that are entirely unique and timeless, innovative and experimental. To Abe, who is influenced by observing her surroundings and functions of daily life, the sacai collection has a distinctive elegance that is based on renderings and transformations of basic and classical items.
The result is a collection of items that can transition easily between various occasions and is not only reserved for special opportunities.
The sacai men’s collection launched in Spring 2009 is based on the same philosophy and similar approach as Abe’s women’s collection. Carefully crafted staple items for men imbued with a touch of elegance.
The sacai women’s collection began showing in Paris during Fashion Week since October 2009 and currently both women’s and men’s collections are shown in Paris. sacai opened their first flagship store in September 2011 in Minamiaoyama, Tokyo.
Abe chose to work with architect, Sou Fujimoto, who is known for his integration of contrary elements such as nature and artifact, the idea of outside and inside, the new and the old in his work, with which she closely identified with. The space was renovated in 2022 and reopened in April 2023, with a new concept by the Japanese designer Yusuke Seki.
sacai is currently available through its flagship stores in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Beijing and Seoul along with specialty stores and department stores around the world.
about A MAGAZINE CURATED BY
A Magazine Curated By explores the universe of a chosen fashion designer in each issue.
Founded in Antwerp in 2001, A Magazine invites a guest curator – an international fashion designer, group or house – to develop innovative, personalised content to express their aesthetic and cultural values in a unique, collectible document. Each issue celebrates this designer’s ethos: their people, their passion, their stories, emotions, fascinations, spontaneity and authenticity. Every A Magazine Curated By is a new story waiting to be told.
PAST ISSUES INCLUDE: Alessandro Michele, Delfina Delettrez, Eckhaus Latta, Erdem, Francesco Risso, Giambattista Valli, Grace Wales Bonner, Haider Ackermann, Jun Takahashi, Kim Jones, Lucie & Luke Meier, Maison Margiela, Pierpaolo Piccioli, Proenza Schouler, Riccardo Tisci, Simone Rocha, Stephen Jones, Thom Browne, Yohji Yamamoto & more.
All images by sacai
PR Agency of sacai by Lucien Pages Communication