A rising star of Japanese fashion, Kunihiko Morinaga and his label Anrealage look to radically transform how we wear and think about clothes. Bringing futuristic swagger to the Paris women’s collections, his light-activated, high-tech fabrics and and provocative form-making presages a new language for clothing.

One of the most innovative designers in contemporary fashion, Tokyo-based Anrealage is the brainchild of Kunihiko Morinaga. The Anrealage approach to design puts tech-savvy, high-concept theory into practice. Renowned for employing deconstructive elements to create unique silhouettes, the label has been acclaimed for it seminal introduction of photochromatic textiles into garments that react and change colours in response to light, as well as other material innovations.

The transformative qualities built into Morinaga’s clothing and accessories suggest infinite possibilities inherent in any one item, portending a future that is as luxurious as it is sustainable. With single pieces taking the place of several articles of clothing, the Anrealage worldview promotes a reduction of the waste associated with the fashion industry. A master of provocation, Morinaga has always been preoccupied in integrating humanity with rapidly evolving technologies, even as he cultivates a healthy skepticism of modern society’s excesses.

The visual narrative itself provides an instructive look at the process of design from the Morinaga’s own point of view - illustrating that he is at once comfortable with developing technologies and respectful of traditional approaches, some of which was on display in a 2020 collaboration with Fendi.