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Kogakuin University Archery Hall
The Archery Hall, one of two sports pavilions FT Architects (Katsuya Fukushima, Hiroko Tominaga) built in 2013 at Kogakuin University, west Tokyo. Each is a column-free room of 7.2 by 10.8 m under an exposed timber roof of horizontal and vertical members, bolt-and-nut jointed. The archery hall uses small timber sections normally used for furniture. Photographs by Shigeo Ogawa.
Sumitomo Hospital Seisen-ryo Apartments
The House of Yagi by Suppose Design Office + Ohno Japan
Text description provided by the architects. The House of Yagi is designed with the idea of an incomplete/complete form. Unlike other projects, the final stage of construction for this house was not aiming towards a finish stage, but to let the owner experience the sense of completion after living here. Interior space of the house is designed to maximize the interaction to its surrounding environment.
adidas Y-3 Yohji Court — Footwear White (EF2554)
Tokyo Rooftops Ginza
Nakagin Capsule Tower — Exterior Detail, Tokyo 2016
Nanzenji Temple Autumn Foliage, Higashiyama, Kyoto
Manchester Cathedral Wooden ceiling
House in Yatsugatake by Kidosaki Architects Studio
This private residence was designed by Kidosaki Architects Studio. It is located on the edge of the Yatsugatake Mountains in Nagano, Japan.
Japanese Warrior Figure — Edo/Meiji Period Ink Painting
Matsumoto Castle, Nagano Prefecture
GENERAL RESEARCH OFF-SITE
Designed by architect Shin Ohori of General Design for Setsumasa and Mami Kobayashi, founders of General Research. Located in the Chichibu mountain range northwest of Tokyo, the site serves as both a personal weekend shelter and a field-testing ground for product development.
The structure is built on an elevated platform using locally harvested larch wood and features removable walls made from fiber-reinforced plastic. It includes two yellow dome tents used as permanent sleeping areas—one placed on a secondary deck and the other on the roof of the main volume. The central enclosed space houses a kitchen and dining area.
The shelter is equipped with electricity, hot water, internet access, and basic amenities, including a clawfoot bathtub. The location is remote but accessible, allowing the Kobayashis to engage in maintenance tasks and outdoor work while still performing professional duties remotely. The architecture is intentionally simple and functional, emphasizing modularity, environmental responsiveness, and a hybrid of modernist design with primitive outdoor living elements.
The project operates as a live-in testing platform for lifestyle and gear integration in a real-world setting, merging domestic space with performance wear prototyping. It represents an approach to architecture and living that prioritizes adaptability, utility, and a direct relationship with the natural environment.
Visvim 2012 Subsection Series
The SUBSECTION SERIES is a fragrance collection by Visvim, inspired by founder Hiroki Nakamura’s encounter with French fragrance designer Blaise Mautin over 20 years ago. The series includes candles, room sprays, and diffusers, each available in various scents. Notable fragrances are NO.1 F.I.L., a blend featuring patchouli and sandalwood, and NO.7 KYOTO, inspired by a morning visit to Kyoto’s Sanjusangendo temple.
A Story of Yonosuke (2013) — Shuichi Okita
Hida-Furukawa (飛騨古川) — Dan
Dan's Hida-Furukawa (飛騨古川) follows the Seto River canal through the preserved old town of Furukawa in Hida City, Gifu Prefecture. The photograph was taken on April 15, 2009.
Ogimachi Global Dispensing Pharmacy — ninkipen! + TKY Japan
Nonnative Wrecking Walls FW2013 Bomber Jacket
The North Face Purple Label Boa Fleece Hooded Vest
Building / 建物 — Shinjuku by perscape
perscape's Building / 建物 looks up along a tiled Shinjuku facade at night, where an illuminated sign reads カラオケ ビッグタイム 4F. The source tags identify a Pentax KX with an SMC Takumar 28mm F3.5 lens.
Snow Egg NISEKO — Riccardo Tossani Architecture
Bounty Hunter BxH iPhone 4 Hardcase
Tokyo Back Alley at Night — Ginza Corridor
sacai — Nylon Twill Blouson
Mastermind Japan x Visvim Gila Moc Mid-Top Sneaker
Jun Takahashi — Undercover Designer Portrait, Dazed June 2013
Interview with Jun Takahashi on Undercover AW13
Q: After two years away from the Paris catwalks, why was now the right time to show a runway collection?
A: After the earthquake disaster, we Japanese were spiritually in the worst state. It’s been two years since then and everyone is hoping to improve the present situation. I am one of them. I chose to have a runway show in Paris in order to restore myself. I thought it would work because going back to the runway was one of the things I had been hoping to do.
Q: Talking of the scar that Japan’s earthquake left on you, did it creatively affect your AW13 collection?
A: I was craving for creation, and that resulted in those one-off dresses. Two years ago, mentally and financially I wasn’t able to create such things. Those one-off pieces are my original works and made intuitively by myself. I am the only one who could make them. They are sacred works to me. I guess I like things where you can feel human warmth.
Q: Why did you call the show ‘Anatomicouture’? Was your intention to expose the inner bones of the garments?
A: It is a mentality of exposing the inner self, corresponding to my desire to reveal my creation and what’s going on in my head.
Q: Despite the skeleton and organ motifs, the collection is beautiful and seductive – does this come back to your interest in the contrast between ugly and beautiful?
A: Ugliness and beauty co-exist in human mentality. I always want to express those emotions.
Q: The AW13 show had the feel of punk performance art – why did you stage it like theatre?
A: Because the theme of this collection is related to human emotions, I thought my theme could be conveyed much better with such staging effects that would move people’s hearts. That’s why I used songs by Cat Power and James Blake. All the songs are great and meaningful and helped me convey what I wanted to express through the lyrics of songs too.
Q: When did your love of fashion start, and how did that lead to Undercover?
A: When I was little I loved drawing and had a twisted personality. I was so into punk during my high school years. My interest in fashion arose when I was around 15 years old and I was hoping to become a designer. At 18, I entered Bunka Fashion College. I was questioning about learning ‘design’ from teachers who were much older than me. So I told myself that I would learn only techniques in the school, nothing else.
Q: Undercover was considered part of a new wave of Japanese designers. How did your approach differ from the likes of Rei Kawakubo and Yohji Yamamoto?
A: I am not sure if Undercover is part of a new wave and I don’t really care. But Rei influenced me a lot on things like breaking stereotypes.
Q: You and your friend Hiroshi Fujiwara collected vintage Seditionaries pieces and published a book about them, and you even appeared in a show of Vivienne Westwood’s designs in Tokyo in 1990. Can you describe the impact punk made on you and explain why it still resonates today?
A: To me, punk means a spirit that questions and abolishes conventional ideas. That is my fundamental principle. You can apply the principle to fashion design. It depends on each season, but I instil punk interpretation into my designs in many ways – for example, by fusing two contradicting elements or applying techniques that are generally considered taboo.
Q: You recently designed lines for Uniqlo and Nike – how did you enjoy those two experiences? Did they feed back into your work with Undercover?
A: The Uniqlo and Nike collaborations are totally different types of designs from that of Undercover. Therefore the collaborations didn’t really affect my work with Undercover. But for my career as a designer, both collaborations became good experiences. Working with Uniqlo gave me the opportunity to learn about the creation of mass products and newly standard items that are totally different from designing avant-garde pieces. As for the collaboration with Nike, I am very satisfied both as a designer and as a runner with the fact that I have been able to create products which integrate necessary functions for running with fashion-design aesthetics, which had often perhaps been missing in the existing sportswear.
Q: You’ve talked in the past of the difficulties with keeping up with the six-month cycle of fashion shows, and skipped showing in Paris for a couple of seasons – how are you currently finding working within the fashion calendar?
A: Right now, I’ve come to the conclusion that the six-month cycle is appropriate. Themes of each Undercover collection vary by season. If we could spend more than six months on a collection, and if we continue to work with the same theme for a year, it would be difficult to keep up the tension towards the theme and I am afraid that the freshness would be lost.
Q: AW13 got a great response. Will we be seeing you back on the runway next season?
A: I could strongly feel that a lot of people were waiting for Undercover and I was very thankful about it. I will be back on the runway next season.
Q: Next year will mark the 20th since you began showing as Undercover. How do you feel you’ve evolved in that time?
A: I went through many phases and experienced many things. There was a time we faced various troubles, or we jumped into things just by force of circumstances. But nothing was wasted. I am responsible for all success and failure of Undercover. I will go forward without being ashamed of the paths I’ve chosen.
Shinjuku Toho Building — Kabukichō, Tokyo
Snow Peak Titanium Fork & Spoon Set SCT-002
Yasaka Pagoda, Higashiyama, Kyoto
Hishikawa Moronobu — Two Mounted Warriors and Seven Foot Soldiers Rush to Battle
NEET Defense Force, Jitaku Keibitai Cosplay
Barbour x To Ki To Nomad 2.5L Jacket
Akira Kurosawa — Seven Samurai (1954) Film Still
Kyudo, Japanese Archery
TAION Military Down Shoulder Bag — Black
House S by Keiji Ashizawa Design
Armored Samurai Photograph, 1860s Japan
visvim FBT — Suede Moccasin
visvim F.I.L. Sendai Store Interior
Head Porter Concept Shop Interior
Weekend Retreat Tokyo by Shin Ohori / General Design Co.
Mountain Research Weekend Retreat — General Design Co., Kawakami
Kyudo Practitioner in Traditional Dojo Attire
K. Ogawa — Military Costume in Old Japan, 1895
Yurikamome Automated Guideway — Motion Blur Long Exposure, Tokyo
Japanese Shoji Screen — Paper Sliding Door
AppuruPai Long-Exposure Photography on a Tokyo Train
N.HOOLYWOOD Jack in the Box Nagoya Store
visvim LAUDA KIOWA-FOLK
Bedwin & The Heartbreakers Waffle Day Pack — Black
Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter, Okayama
Visvim KNGR Leather Essentials Case (L)
visvim F.I.L. Wanchai Opening iPad Leather Cases
Visvim F.I.L. Nagoya — Concept Store Interior or FW2009 Collection
Visvim F.I.L. Kyoto Store Interior
Nike Sportswear NSW Athletics Far East Collection
WTAPS Visual Armored Store Installation
Kazumasa Ogawa — Sōhei (Fighting Monk), Military Costumes in Old Japan (1893)
Goro's Black Leather Key Case with Coral Beads and Cord
Porter Bicycle Style Cycling Bag
Converse Tokyo x Timex Camper Japan-Exclusive Watch
F.C. Real Bristol x Nike Camouflage Practice Shorts
White Mountaineering BLK Spring/Summer 2011 Technical Jacket and Trousers
Jam Home Made Branded Jar
JAM Home Made Positive Mental Attitude Chronograph Watch
WTAPS Spring/Summer 2011 'Who Dares Wins' Editorial, Cool Trans
Hobo x Klean Kanteen Insulated Classic Bottle Set
Porter Liquid Waist Bag in Khaki
Makoto Azuma, Second Nature at 21_21 Design Sight, Tokyo (2008)
Taylor Design x The North Face Spring/Summer 2009 Capsule Collection
Master-Piece Camo Backpack, MultiCam and Grey Colorways
Uniform Experiment x New Era 9Fifty Navy Wool Cap
Visvim Cordura 20L Backpack in Navy
Uniform Experiment U.E. Navy Sweat Hoodie, Navy and Grey
Porter x A Bathing Ape 1st Camo Mobile Pouch
Junya Watanabe Comme des Garçons MAN Coated Hooded Jacket
SOPHNET. x visvim Ballistic 23L Backpack in Navy
WTAPS 'Rise Above' Pullover Hoodie
WTAPS Ingredients / Way of Life Garment Label
Bakumatsu-Era Samurai Portrait, 19th-Century Japanese Photograph
Visvim LAMINA Rucksack 22L KUDU, Spring/Summer 2011
ISAORA x Porter Spring/Summer 2011 Bag Collection
Sandinista x hobo Paraffin Canvas Waist / Shoulder Bag
Visvim x The Black Sense Market BALLISTIC 23L Backpack
The Black Sense Market x Visvim 20L Backpack
Muji 12-Digit Calculator, White Minimalist Desktop Design
