Wataru Tominaga is everywhere. A Tokyo-based fashion designer and trained fine artist, he’s studied in Japan, England, and Finland, to name just a few. In 2016, he won the Grand Jury Première Vision Prize at Hyères Fashion and Photography Festival. Hot off the heels of that recognition, he launched his own eponymous fashion line in 2019. Since then, he’s collaborated with brands like Petit Bateau and Marimekko. His focus? Unisex garments infused with playful colour and graphics.
Tominaga’s current exhibit at Los Angeles’ Hammer Museum, Refashioning, is in collaboration with Concept Foreign Garments New York (CFGNY) and represents his avant-garde, reconstructive approach to art. The aim of the exhibit is to demonstrate how fashion is uniquely placed, as art that can be worn and used, to comment on body politics. Each garment is structured subversively: pants widen and come out in huge strips, tie-die bonanza sheets hang all over a room, mesh dresses are open in the back and boast a delicate sieve of holes. Stepping into the exhibit is like looking at yourself in a fun house mirror; what you think you know is immediately challenged with whacky reimagination.
Although you might think that a fashion designer with such a sensibility would be eccentric and hard to reach, it’s actually quite the opposite. Tominaga reveals himself to be sensible, down-to-earth, and disciplined in his art. His focus is clear, and he never strays from his goals, instead perfecting his craft like a runner practising his long jump. His experimentation is obvious, but so is his organisation and meticulousness. We sat down with the creator to chat about Refashioning and his artistic influences.
Hi Wataru! We first talked to you in 2016, fresh off from winning at the prestigious Hyères festival. It’s been eight years since then. Where do you feel you stand now compared to then, both personally and professionally?
Personally and professionally, what I would like to do has not changed because I always wanted to work in both fashion and fine art. I am very glad that I am able to show my works in an art institution at the same time as running my own brand.
In that interview, you said: “Nowadays, fashion designers or artists are not evaluated by their practical skills, it is more about how to add value to things.” In an age where social media dominates, and where virality equals ‘success’, do you think this is truer than ever? Or on the contrary, after some viral stunts, we’re going back to valuing practical skills?
I think it is true and it is not a problem for some creative people. But for me, practical skills and quality are important as the added value. I would always like to come back to practical experiment, when we judge more and more things on screen and online.
Are there any aspects of your work that are nostalgic rather than futuristic or forward-looking? What eras are you inspired by?
I am usually interested and inspired in post-war fashion, when ordinary people started experimenting with fashion on street. I am not always interested in the latest technologies, but I don’t think it means that I am not forward-looking.
It seems like for a long time, you’ve been drawn to very bright colours and vertical lines in your creations. Why does this remain a constant in your artistic practice?
Bright colours are very important for me to experiment with queerness, chaos, and representation of pop culture. And on the contrary, vertical lines are important for organising those experiments. I am interested in the results of the dialectic practice between them.
“I always thought fashion and textile could be art because it is not simply about a product. For me, it is also about gender, style, attitude, identity, authenticity, power, rule, space, and so on.”
In the summary of the exhibit, you’re described as a transdisciplinary artist. You’ve studied Applied Art Textile in Japan, Fine Arts, and Fashion Design, so I get that. But how do you define your practice?
My approach is to move beyond the clear-cut definitions of Art and Design, as well as other dichotomies. However, in reality, these fields often remain divided into distinct industries. In the fashion industry, I aim to create garments for everyday people that embody a queer and stateless aesthetic, drawing inspiration from various visual and pop cultures for streetwear. In the Fine Art sector, I seek to explore and reinterpret the queer environment through fashion and textile work, expressed in the forms of installation, sculpture, and performance.
Do you think textiles and garments occupy a special place in the artistic sphere? Why or why not? There’s this eternal debate of fashion being art or not. Where do you stand on it, as someone who is in between both creative outputs?
I always thought fashion and textile could be art because it is not simply about a product. For me, it is also about gender, style, attitude, identity, authenticity, power, rule, space, and so on. There are so many ways of talking and experimenting about fashion and textile.
What was it like to collaborate with CFGNY? Do you notice a different approach to fashion in New York compared to Tokyo?
I feel like I found very good friends and knowing them for very long time. In terms of the difference, I think people in NYC are very interested in the people’s attitude and a body conscious silhouette.
I read that you want to challenge “vaguely Asian” aesthetics. Can you describe what that means and how you go about challenging them?
“Vaguely Asian” is originally CFGNY’s concept for being Asian in Western culture. But I also feel that I’m vaguely Japanese many times because I have spent many years in different cities in Western countries.
What other constructs or conventions do you seek to challenge in Refashioning?
I would like to challenge performance including the audience.
