Jun Takahashi on the Undercover Fall / Winter 21 Collection

It’s a Zoom / everything-from-home world out there, and like it or not we are all in it, including Jun Takahashi, the designer of Undercover. Still, the designer managed to pull off one of our favorite collections this season – not that we expected anything less. His mix of quirkiness and genius for graphics paid off regardless of the limitations of the presentation format.

We caught up with Takahashi via email to ask him a few questions about the collection and his current mood.

1) What was the main idea behind this collection?

I was aiming to design items that could be worn every day, items that I would want to wear, while also infusing the spirit of UNDERCOVER. There are a few different concepts incorporated into the designs.

2) Tells us about Markus Akesson, the artist behind the graphics.

I went to see Markus’s exhibition at a gallery in Paris and I liked it so much that I bought some of his works. One painting hangs in my atelier. I was also able to meet Markus at that time. After that, I used his work in my F/W 2014 show “COLD BLOOD” as a print. His work has a lot of commonalities with my own. Finally, after 7 years, I decided to use some of his recent works and the collaboration was formed.

3) There is a softness and coziness to the collection. Did the current circumstances have something to do with it?

I work from home now 1-2 days a week. I was designing with a more relaxed feeling, something completely separate from COVID-19, with the idea of returning back to our lives before.

4) Do you miss not having the ability to put on a live show? Did it affect the thinking behind this collection?

I certainly miss having a live runway show. However, if I were to do a live runway, I would want to add some form of “entertainment” completely separated from reality. So this time, I have completely removed the idea of a runway. I am being more conscious of our everyday lives.

5) If you did have a show, what music would you use for this? What music are you into these days?

This collection is a somewhat lighter and relaxed vision, but of course, I think music that is slightly warped would match well. It would be cool to take a mix of famous songs and play them in reverse. I think that would fit this collection. Since I have been spending a great deal of time at home, I am listening to a lot of jazz, older Japanese pop, and music from films.