Clothes made of buttons?!
| Item Number | tk002304 |
| Item Name | Prayer Jacket (set) |
| Price | Prayer Jacket: 3,150,00 yen |
| Limited | 1 set each |
| Size | Ladies size S (adjustment possible) |
| Material | Prayer Jacket: base fabric: 100% polyester, 100% cotton, buttons |
| Payment Methods | PayPal |
| Shipping | Shipping costs will be emailed after order (all items ship from Japan) |
| Time to delivery | about one month |
| Notes | Returns are not accepted. Colors may differ slightly from photos. |
| Buyer | Yu Yamada |
ANREALAGE's Jacket
At a glance, an overwhelming sense of force and presence hits you. The jacket, from top to bottom, is made of... buttons!
From the day I saw this jacket the fashion brand which created it, ANREALAGE, has taken my heart.
There are 5000 buttons on the Prayer Jacket! 15,000 on the gold Full Metal Jacket!!
When you pick up the 20 kg Full Metal Jacket, the buttons rustle, making a slightly high pitched pleasant sound; then you feel the weight of the jacket.
From the weight I feel a fondness from the jacket's creator, without regret, even sincerity sewn in with each button which was carefully crafted at their atelier.
That's right, ANREALAGE is a fashion brand based in Tokyo for which people have high expectations.
ANREALAGE is already known as the bearer of a new handicraft art in modern Japan.
Prayer Jacket, using 5,000 buttons.
All sorts and sizes of white and clear buttons.
Full Metal Jacket, using 20,000 buttons.
Look closely, gold buttons of varying shapes.
God dwells in the details
So I headed to the creator's atelier of this terrific piece, fashion designer and artisan Morinaga Kunihiko.
His atelier is pure white, you can see the sewing machines clearly lined up against the wall. On the other side of the room... it's there! The Prayer Jacket. It's presence hasn't changed.
At first glance Mr. Morinaga seems slightly fierce, but once you start talking, he is like a nice elder brother. One of his hobbies is reading manga, a favorite being works by Fujiko F Fujiko and Inoe Takahiko. We chatted for awhile about our common appreciation for Inoe's work, but let's get down to business.
Morinaga: I announced Prayer Jacket in the collection of spring 2007, and Full Metal Jacket that autumn. Fashion designers typically choose buttons by looking for matches with the garment's fabric. Usually they'll just tell their assistant "add buttons here", not really thinking about the essence of the button's existence. That's the source of my inspiration; why not make buttons the theme of the garment? I have a habit of becoming enraptured by an idea once it comes to mind.
Yamada: So you made this jacket with buttons from various clothing and even originals of your own?
Morinaga: To me buttons are an extremely functional part of clothing, it was not difficult to shift perspective and look at them as the "finishing touch" of my work.
Yamada: In your past collections you've announced several series of patchwork. Your approach of working out every detail, to the point of losing interest, truly represents your philosophy of "God is in the details, a search for value in indirect exploration."
Morinaga: "God is in the details" is a good phrase (we both nod thoughtfully)
Yamada: I hear poetry in all of your titles, "Sparrow's Namida" in 2005AW, "Kanon" in 2006AW, and "Prayer Jacket" in 2007SS. Are there any authors you are particularly fond of?
Morinaga: I like Dazai Osamu.
Yamada: Now that you mention it, Daizu Osamu supposedly lived near my home...
And so our conversation trailed off onto other topics...
a studio of pure white, sewing machines in formation
the right hand is to undergo renovation in November. Prayer Jacket in full glory.
Mr. Morinaga. He looks like he has bite, but he's a true gentleman.
He's also making these beautiful original buttons
In conclusion: modern armor
ANREALAGE, the senders of these jackets into the world, can be called avantgarde. The design is certainly innovative, backed up by an attention to detail that knows no end.
I find Mr. Morigana's transformation of buttons from the functional to ornamentational particularly ironic and interesting.
These jackets represent not only the crystallization of ANREALAGE's creative talents, but at the same time hail to the good old days of quality craft work. The beauty inherent in handcrafted work is still the same today.
Both jackets, as the name Full Metal Jacket implies, are modern armor.
As the nobility of old had armor in their castles, should not we in the modern age also have our own armor to wear and face the day?
ANREALAGE Profile
Kunihiko Morinaga, born in 1980 in Tokyo. A graduate of Waseda University and the Vantan Career School, he established his brand in 2003. While he was in school he started a fashion club and show, which is where ANREALAGE has its origins. In 2005, Morinaga won the "GEN ART" styles 2005, an avantgarde "grand prix" prize (a contest for young designers, held in NYC). In November 2005, he started his run-way collection at the Tokyo Tower viewing platform with Keisuke Kanda. In August, 2007, Morinaga held the exhibition named "ANREALAGE HAND TECHNIC" at the National Art Center SFT located in B1. His concept is "God is in the Details", we want to reexamine ordinary lives by having a very close eye on detail. Based in Tokyo we create work displaying an original elegance.
ANREALAGE's official site:> ANREALAGE CO.LTD
ANREALAGE's delicate patch work.
2007SS "Prayer"
2007SS "Prayer" 2
2007AW "Distant Spring"