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WINNER INTERVIEW

岩井 良太 / Ryota Iwai

オーラリー / AURALEE

FASHION PRIZE OF TOKYO 2019
Winner Interview

Interview by Yuki Harada
Translation by Aiko Osaki
Photography by Yohey Goto
July. 31,2019

岩井 良太 / Ryota Iwai

Q. In announcing your collection for 2 seasons at Paris as the award winner of the FASHION PRIZE OF TOKYO 2019, with what mind set did you face this?

I thought this would be a good opportunity to realize overseas advancements which I had been vaguely thinking about from before. At the same time, unlike the Japanese brands which have already made advances into overseas markets, it’s not like our brand has a powerful individuality or originality, and rather, ours is a brand which had always aimed at making high quality neutral clothes, so to be honest, I was worried whether or not we would be accepted overseas. But even so, instead of overthinking and/or overreaching because it is a runway show or presentation type announcements overseas, I was more conscious of doing what we’ve always done, making announcements befitting ourselves, so I faced the Paris presentation creating a team which understands the idea, way of thinking behind the brand, and finding a venue which matches the mood, atmosphere of the brand.

Photo by Shoji Fujii

Fillm by Yohei Haga

How was the reaction of local buyers and press?

The first presentation (2019 A/W season), was held at le studio Brancusi at Centre Pompidou in Paris, and it was an extremely meaningful experience in that I was able to receive all sorts of opinions, from praises as being very good, to comments that it should be more powerful. The second presentation (2020 S/S season) was held at a prestigious high school called Henry 4th at the left shore of the Seine river. It was an extremely comfortable venue with an inner court and plenty of sunlight, and we received an even more positive reaction than the first presentation. Furthermore, March is during the women’s fashion week term so there are only women’s buyers in Paris, but in June, although it is during the men’s fashion week term, part of women’s buying starts also, so our collection got to be seen from both men’s and women’s buyers from around the world, and we were able to receive much more reaction than we had anticipated.

AURALEE SPRING/SUMMER 2020 PRESENTATION Backstage

Q. You held a talk show as the “FASHION PRIZE OF TOKYO WINNER’S EVENT” held this March during fashion week Tokyo. What was the reason for this, and what is your impression of doing this?

I wanted to convey to people, especially to young people including students, the behind-the-scenes part of clothes making which isn’t usually shown, such as how I came to be working at my current job, thoughts behind my clothes making, how this job involves all sorts of people and how I work with them, etc., so I decided to do a talk show. The process I followed up until I started my own brand is not what one may call a royal road, but I thought, all the more reason why people can find out and learn that there’s not only one way to do this, and that maybe they too can do it. Many people came to the event, and I received many questions from students, so I think it was a success.

Q. Winning the FASHION PRIZE OF TOKYO and acting under its support. What kind of experience has all this been for the brand?

We’ve had transactions with overseas shops in the past, but through being awarded this prize, we’ve experienced our very first overseas collection presentation, which was an extremely positive experience for the brand, and has also allowed us to develop new business. Also, by doing a show-type presentation with models actually walking around wearing our clothes, instead of the exhibition type presentation we normally had done, gave us a chance to build up our collection with a viewpoint we’ve never had before, not just in styling, production, music, but the collection itself, which was extremely stimulating.

Q. Please tell us of your future aspirations.

Having presented our collection for 2 seasons in Paris, having presented it in such a form for the first time, there were parts I was very pleased with, and many parts I felt were still lacking, including the quality of the clothing itself. So, from here on, I’d like to remedy such problems one-by-one, and continue presenting a show for a while, while continuing exhibits at Paris also. I intend to increase opportunities for people to find out about the brand, bit by bit.