Issey Miyake, as a brand, dates from 1970–and those famous pleats made their debut in the ‘80s–but lately, various design teams have worked hard to maintain Miyake’s signatures while pushing the collection forward. And for many seasons now (this one included), editors and retailers have made their way to the défilé near the Place des Vosges to witness the label’s evolution.

To that end, the Fall 2012 collection featured plenty of rather straightforward clothes, with just enough “tweaks” to keep things interesting. (Miyake’s distinctive accordion pleats, for example, showed up in roomy harem pants with ribbed cuffs.) Three key elements pulled everything together: color (in a word, vibrant); pattern (bold plaids and stripes); and lots of great texture.

The final set piece, in fact, was a celebration of texture–a bold-collared vest, and a full bomber jacket, made of rigid black triangles bonded to fabric. Very cool, very 21st century, and quite chic, these two museum-worthy garments were more than enough to earn the design team a hearty round of applause.

––Mark Grischke

Photographs by Stéphane Israël