Ambush (Q2629)
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| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Ambush |
No description defined |
Statements
School is still in session for Ambush’s Yoon Ahn, who is continuing her exploration of “Ambush Academy” for the label’s resort collection. “Fall was Ivy League, a more preppy kind of vibe; but this season we’re taking it to the quirky art class kids,” she explained on a Zoom call from Japan. “There’s more cuteness, it’s more eccentric, but there’s also a craftiness, as if we gave people ribbons and fabric and they put the clothes together themselves.”That vision shone through in basic pieces like white cotton tank tops had ribbons that tied across the chest, the purposely uneven knit of a chunky varsity-inspired cardigan, and clothes that were Frankenstein-ed together à la a button-up shirt with a knitted vest front, or the way the lining stuck out from the hem of tailored separates. There are frills galore, patchworked pieces, and a baseball sweater that reads: I’M OUT OF MY MIND PLEASE LEAVE A MESSAGE next to an illustration of a fairy.Pearl and crystal embellishments abound throughout. See the pearl wallet chain and lariat necklace, the spiked-bracelet made from pyramid-pearls, or the rhinestones embroidered haphazardly on jeans and less haphazardly on sheer knee-length skirts. The furry mary-janes are a sneak peek at an upcoming collaboration with Uggs. It’s a vision that recreates the exact way young people are dressing today; wearing micro-skirts with over-the knee socks, juxtaposing girly sheer twinsets with baggy sports-inspired jerseys, and sporting boxers as shorts, baby tees over slip dresses, and skirts over pants. Everything and anything goes, as long as it’s a representation of the wearer’s unique personal style.
18 June 2024
If you’re a Gen-Xer or a millennial—or even the oldest of Gen-Z—then preppy equals varsity jackets, khakis, navy cricket sweaters, collegiate jerseys… you get the gist. “Preppy” conjures up images of frat boys in tailored shorts, boat shoes, and Lacoste polo shirts. There are Tommy Hilfiger, Abercrombie & Fitch, Ralph Lauren, J. Crew.If you’re Gen Alpha, however, at least according to TikTok, then “preppy” means something completely different: Stanley tumbler cups, pastel colored athleisure, cutesy smiley face graphics. But in designer Yoon Ahn’s imaginary high school, the one in which she’s been contextualizing her latest Ambush collections revolving around the school uniform, it’s the OG prep that counts.This generational split in fashion vernacular is the true indicator of who Ahn is speaking to with these clothes. There is a sense of nostalgia attached to the idea of a school uniform, whether you wore one or not, that only comes with hindsight—few teenagers actually enjoy having to wear the same thing every day. Add to that the overarching idea of collegiate Americana that became a prominent American aesthetic indicator by way of high school movies from the aughts. “We used to look up to America as the cultural leader,” said Ahn, “something aspirational through this aesthetic that became ingrained in people that is now something they want to revisit.”Prep was exported from the U.S. into the world to become a globalized aesthetic, one that is often more compelling—and cool—out of context. That was the case with this lineup, which Ahn said she created by researching imagery of preppiness in American literature and by vintage hunting in Japan, (“Japan has an obsession with Americana,” she noted). There was a coolness to her varsity knits and the treatment of “Ambush” as a team or school logo, and the subtraction of the argyle sweater motif as cutouts on a poplin shirt and patchworks of flannels and rugby shirts showcased her playful ingenuity as a designer.Ahn said that what attracted her to this preppy Americana uniform was not just the nostalgia, but that there is “a steadiness to the aesthetic.” This same stability is what Ahn has been chasing after with her thematic examination of the uniform in her collections.
“Although the theme might change every season, I always make sure that whatever I made last season can carry on to the next,” she said, adding, “we all now shop without disregarding what we wore in the winter just because we’re about to go into spring.” Regardless of what we call it, there is a consistency to the idea of “preppy.” Four seasons deep in the world of uniforms, there is now one to Ambush, too.
21 February 2024
Do you have a personal uniform? Most fashion-minded folks live in one of two camps: Under the assumption that their style is more involved and wider-reaching than the concept of a uniform, or with the belief that their outfits all fall under a unique—but uniformal—personal aesthetic.If you ask Ambush designer Yoon Ahn, most people fall somewhere in the middle. Wedohave uniforms but they are not individual. “I think uniforms show the reflection of human psychology,” said the designer, Zooming from Tokyo. “As much as we like to be individualistic and expressive, we consciously or subconsciously always fall back into a ‘category.’” For Ahn, it all simmers down to our yearning for belonging, and, particularly today, relates to a “very modern digital mentality.” Need proof? Scroll down your TikTok For You page—lots of “personal style,” yet most mere versions of one viral trend.For three seasons now, this spring lineup included, Ahn has been riffing off the idea of uniform dressing. This approach stands on three legs: First, Ahn finds the idea of uniforms interesting: “and I started to loosely focus on the school theme because I thought it would be a fun playground to build on this concept,” she said. Second, it’s a challenge: “I like taking one single theme and seeing how we can spread it and turn it into something much more interesting and fashion.” Third, it’s a good business approach: “It’s becoming more clear to me how I want to define what our world is around this, and I think it’s given a strong identity to our apparel storytelling.”For spring, Ahn took her class out into the field. “After last season’s rave collection, I wanted some brightness,” she said. This meant lighter fabrics and more play on the sporty side of high school uniforms: track sets, varsity jerseys, and some very cool skirts and corsets with football lacing. “I think it’s a quite charming collection,” she said. Sheer shorts and soccer tees with bedazzled numbers supported that statement. They added some playful lightness to the assortment, as did a generous amount of bow details (though some looks were borderline saccharine). Most impactful and significantly cooler were the distressed hems on knitwear and cut-off tailoring. Here, the designer found inspiration in the “attitude, angst, and rebellious spirit” of the rock music coming from the tail end of the ’90s and the early 2000s.
There’s something fascinatingly meta about Ahn building a sartorial code for her Ambush devotees by grabbing the notion of a school uniform and blending it with the idiosyncratic style of the people that inspire her (she mentioned the likes of Fiona Apple and Kim Gordon). It will be curious to see this version of Ambush run wild on the streets. How do you craft a uniform that is both inspired by folks who rejected every norm and appeals to fashion people who are convinced they dress in everything but? We’ll find out soon enough—Ambush’s fall collection, the first in this trilogy, just delivered in stores.
29 September 2023
The death of personal style has been a trending topic of conversation among fashion-philes. Newsletters, personal essays, trend recaps—fashion writers seem to be preoccupied with the state ofindividuality, and by the fact that, despite our best efforts, we all seem to dress the same. But it’s not that we all look like carbon-copies of each other, it’s that we’re alllookingat similar things. Our individuality is informed by variations of the same things—we have access to everything, but algorithms and taxonomies and “for you” pages…they all show us a blend of similar source material.This was the backdrop of Yoon’s fall 2023 Ambush collection. “I like to mix elements that inspire me, finding a good balance between them inmyworld,” the designer said over breakfast—she was in New York to host a rave with Nike—“but there’s always an underlying social study. I’m curious as to why people act a certain way or react to certain things.”Last season Yoon recreated a rave scene; for fall “the kids partied too much so they got sent to private school.” She’s intrigued by the notion of adding individuality to something as restrictive as a uniform. How can one find identity within monotony? For Yoon, the answer is in the details. There were trippy double waistbands on tailored shorts and trousers; button-downs and jackets cut to drape around the shoulders and held in place by grommet-clad straps; charcoal knits with their hems distressed; varsity jackets with an extra layer of leather on the bodices; oversized blazers and coats with harnesses across the chest; and leather jackets with spray painted graphics. You can take the kids out of the rave, but not the rave out of the kids.Yoon’s influences this time around included Aphex Twin and K-Pop group New Jeans, Japanese private school uniforms, Kinji Fukasaku’s cult 2000 filmBattle Royale, and dark techno. The techno set the pace for this season. Yoon tends to tie in her collections to music, and the repetitive nature of the genre’s beat helped guide the uniform concept. “It’s not as twisted or colorful as a rave,” she said, “it’s repetitive and a little darker.”Fashion of late has been looking at uniforms because of their ripeness for subversion.
There’s irony in wearing a school uniform to a rave or a fashion show, but what happens when uniforms are…the uniform? “If you look at the big picture, some people say they exercise their individuality, but everyone still puts on the same uniform of a certain trope that they play,” Yoon said.There’s truth in that—look at any street style gallery and you’ll spot all the fashion archetypes. Influencers dress a certain way because they think that’s how they’re supposed to look, ditto editors and designers. We play the same archetypes we assign to ourselves over and over and over. As Yoon said, “we never really graduate from high school.”
18 February 2023
This was a multi-pass Ambush collection, offering direct wearable access to two distant worlds: 1990s Tokyo clubland and contemporary MMO avatar culture. Chatting down the Zoom (which should with luck be our last, as Runway is reverting to pre-pandemic protocols for reviewing), Yoon observed: “It’s our own rave, a full-on party. I thought about how you put on a different persona when you go out; you pick a player through which to play the game. It also kind of ties into the metaverse and those activities that I’ve been building around Ambush in order to see what kind of clothes can actually eventually become like avatar characters. So it was a collection of all that stuff. But most importantly, it is a rave.”The bunny-, bear-, and mouse-eared balaclavas seemed like a blatant play on those gaming-platform aesthetics Yoon was riffing on, as did her rebooted version of the ’90sTank Girl/Buffalo boot that is everywhere, online and off, right now. The metallic personal CD players (actually card cases, Yoon said) and cat-ear headphones were funny throwbacks too. There were woo-woo chill-out-room light-show patterns in sequined shirts and print dresses and skirts. Opaque croc-pressed workwear and A-chain mesh dresses were for more transparently inclined characters. Leather leg warmers, bikini tops in mesh and Lycra, leather chaps with popper-secured side fastenings, corset crop tops, cropped (faux) fur jackets, baggy denim, and podium-poser miniskirts were all pieces you’d love to have at your disposal before a night spent next to the subwoofers.Yoon added that many of the looks would help you fit in before sunset too: “A lot of the pieces, especially the outerwear, are reversible so you can wear a look as a suit, maybe even go to work in it, and then flip it into something wilder to go out in afterward.” She added: “I had a lot of fun making it. There’s a lot of colors and textures that are clashing with each other in a massive way, like a crazy tune.”
12 October 2022
“The touchpoint and the root of every Ambush collection has to come from everything that happens in Japan that is unique,” said Yoon Ahn when we met at the very beginning of Paris Fashion Week. Given that she has been on that scene since the early 2000s, when she moved to Tokyo with her family, not to mention that the Ambush office sits right in Shibuya, Yoon has plenty of material to mine. This pre-collection represented a down-tempo interlude in Ambush’s rhythm of show season spectacular, and was more observationaL. The collection was designed as an imagined curation of the clothes she sees on the kids who are flocking back to Shibuya today. “Things are opening up, the clubs: everything's coming back in Tokyo. I've been feeling that.”Tailoring, sportswear, footwear, nylon-spliced denim, and of course this brand’s core category of jewelry was all effectively designed to be defined less by the wearer’s gender identity than their aesthetic orientation and subcultural proclivity. The classics covered, from Ambush specific bodice tops and kimono coats to standards including bowling shirts and tracksuits, were adroitly but subtly remixed through tweaks in proportion, color, and fabrication. Pills and mushrooms came suspended from safety pin earrings and chains, supplies brought in for a big night ahead. This though was a collection built for street life: night life comes later.
27 June 2022
Drones and sirens and red flashing lights were the welcome to Ambush’s debut catwalk show in Milan. When another journalist said the atmosphere made her uncomfortable after the show, designer Yoon Ahn balked: “I think it’s beautiful,” she said. Fashion has struggled to keep prodding forward with its planned shows while war rages in Ukraine, but a show soundtracked by white noise distorted to sound like the crush of whirring helicopters is probably not the right note to hit.Nevertheless, Ambush’s catwalk debut strutted on with a collection that played to the diversity of Ahn’s strengths and interests. She loves a platform shoe in her own life, and this season hers were buckled up to the knee. Black leather played with fetish, a recurring obsession, while heart-shaped bags and cut-outs veered into cuteness. Big shearling outerwear was contrasted with small, cropped shearling parkas and skin was everywhere—including a skirt with a slit up the back so high it revealed a flash of derrière.The most worthy pieces were the ones where Ahn had taken material development as her mission. Heavy dresses made from plastic beads felt the most fresh, whirring with each step. Ditto the leather vests made from interlacing laser-cut letter As; the motif repeated as A-A-A chainmail. These ideas felt born from Ahn’s jewelry practice and thus the most enticing and personal of the bunch. For her next runway, here’s hoping for more along this thread. And maybe a calmer, less aggressive vibe in the room.
26 February 2022
Dressed in pink faux fur while eating Bircher muesli at the breakfast bar of her hotel (where Arsène Wenger was also installed), Yoon Ahn on Saturday morning pivoted her attention from her supporting role at Kim Jones’ “Dior-core” delight (props,ACM) to her own Ambush main event. Refreshingly frank, she said: “Since we expanded from jewelry into clothing it’s been a process of experimentation. And I’m not going to pretend I’ve got all the answers. But after a few seasons of doing apparel, I’m starting to understand there are certain things I keep coming back to and developing. And I think it is these things that must be me.”Next month we are going to see the debut Ambush show, long overdue, presented in Milan. This is where the Ambush studio, sibling in the New Guards stable of labels including Off-White and Marcelo Burlon, is physically based. But speaking refreshingly in-person with this Tokyo-based creative made it clear she is operating on a level beyond borders. The one adjective she kept returning to when considering both this “Workshop” collection (the term under which Ambush pre collections are categorized) and next month’s “Wardrobe & Artisanal” (mainline) was “sensual”—yet she was sanguine about the domain in which the senses of her audience are currently aroused.This season there was an emphasis on the sustainable, with this young brand’s first committed foray into organic and recycled fabrication. The second emphasis was on technology—apparently a treatment applied to the collection’s knits means they alter coloration according to the light—and injected panel outerwear designed to maximize volume and minimize weight. These were all preambles to a collection to come that is still manifesting but which is taking fascinating shape.
24 January 2022
The first 20 looks in this spring Ambush collection are part of a new seasonal capsule named Wksp—short for ‘workshop’ and dispensing with the ‘r’ and the ‘h’ as well as the more regularly marginalized vowels. Unlike the title, this collection read as near-fully formed: a functionally geeky, technically-rendered fashion sportswear proposition that was subtly branded, punchily colored, and featured an attractively abstract heat-map print by Hagihara Takuya. Down the Zoom from Tokyo, Yooh Ahn said: “I’ve been doing a lot of outdoor activities which got me thinking how I could bring reality to a daily wardrobe without making it mundane.” This first edition, she added, was mountaineering inspired. “It’s something seperate to the main collection but which can co-exist alongside it,” she added.Continuing the ascent at around look 20 the atmosphere changed to something softer and hand-rendered in a black crochet shirtdress embroidered with flowers from which hung colored pieces of wool. The tactility and texture of crochet developed as the chief theme across the collection, reproduced by slicing into leather coats, a lemon skirt, and a lavender shirtfront. Alongside it ran an attractively botanical inspired element that included a skirt and bodice both fringed with tussocks of green stem-like cord and later—in the collection’s more overtly hand-fashioned final section—an unmissable abstract wildflower kaleidoscope in sequin.The menswear, especially in that opening section, was executed with typical deftness while the womenswear marked a more confident pitch at the conventionally feminine than has been seen at Ambush previously. Said Ahn: “Femininity has strength. And I wasn’t trying to hide this before, it’s more that we are still quite young with apparel and I have been spending more time on the men’s line because we have more men’s customers. And now I just feel more comfortable doing womenswear in a way that she doesn’t necessarily have to be like the girlfriend of that guy, but they need to live in the same universe.”
29 June 2021
Not unlike the source material for many of her most celebrated found-object jewelry pieces—safety pins, chain links, zip ties, carabiniers—Yoon Ahn is holding things together. Framed by a Zoom backdrop of pastel clouds, Ahn said from Tokyo that this collection was a continuation of last season’s project to “lay the ground” for Ambush’s future visual and wearable language. And now that the label is produced under the New Guards Group banner in Italy (Japanese denim aside), she has an expansive territory to shape.One major consideration, she said, was to set about building garments that are both comfortable and givecomfort, “that bring that mental state.” To create said state, Ahn shaped pieces designed to fire a sensation of specialness—“I don’t want to forget that feeling”—yet which: “become part of our daily life so that we can enjoy them more frequently.”That was articulated in flexibly cut dresses punctuated with sequins, cutouts, and chain-link hardwear, a bomber jacket dress skirted in rib knit, and forgiving but unconventionally cut tailoring for men and women in voluminous silhouettes with activewear detailing: pieces to generate both impact and ease. Kimono-collared down jackets and saturated color, full-length shearlings played outerwear facade. Shoes included rubberized leather rain boots with square heels and faux fur slippers. Bags featuredA-shaped metal handles on a new crossbody model; this hardware, along with the jewelry detailing on some of the ready-to-wear, were the loudest examples of visual branding in a collection that eschewed shouty logos or graphic-based messaging in favor of a more discreet approach.This collection was an effective chapter in Ahn’s ongoing narrative, and one which opened up various possible plot twists ahead. Some of the most recognizable pieces created by Ahn as a jewelry designer have been based on those found objects: by re-contextualizing and reconfiguring these objects, she renders them “special” as jewelry through the prism of her design process. Working out how, or if, to adapt this genre-defying approach—an approach that ambushes our preconceptions—to the much broader yet physically specific context of clothing (ready-to-wear Readymades) is a fascinating challenge whose answer might just lurk in Ahn’s instinctive collision of specialness and comfort.
1 February 2021
Not unlike the source material for many of her most celebrated found object jewelry pieces—safety pins, chain links, zip ties, carabiniers—Yoon Ahn is holding things together. Framed by a Zoom backdrop of pastel clouds, Ahn said from Tokyo that this collection was a continuation of last season’s project to “lay the ground” for Ambush’s future visual and wearable language. And now that the label is produced under the New Guards Group banner in Italy (Japanese denim apart), she has an expansive territory to shape.One major consideration, she said, was to set about building garments that are both comfortable and which givecomfort, “that bring that mental state.” To create said state Ahn shaped pieces designed to fire a sensation of specialness—“I don’t want to forget that feeling”—yet which: “become part of our daily life so that we can enjoy them more frequently.”That was articulated in flexibly-cut dresses punctuated with sequins, cut-outs, and chain link hardwear, a bomber-jacket dress skirted in rib knit, and forgiving but unconventionally cut tailoring for men and women in volumized silhouettes with active-wear detailing: pieces to generate both impact and ease. Kimono collared down jackets and saturated color, full length shearlings played outerwear facade. Shoes included rubberized leather rain boots with square heels and faux fur slippers. Bags featured A-shaped metal handles on a new cross-body model; this hardware, along with the jewelry detailing on some of the ready-to-wear, were the loudest examples of visual branding in a collection that eschewed shouty logos or graphic-based messaging in favor of a more discreet approach.This collection was an effective chapter in Ahn’s ongoing narrative, and one which opened up various possible plot-twists ahead. Some of the most recognizable pieces created by Ahn as a jewelry designer have been based on those found objects: by recontextualizing and reconfiguring these objects she renders them ‘special’ as jewelry through the prism of her design process. Working out how, or if, to adapt this genre-defying approach—an approach that ambushes our preconceptions—to the much broader yet physically specific context of clothing (ready-to-wear Readymades) is a fascinating challenge whose answer might just lurk in Ahn’s instinctive collision of specialness and comfort.
1 February 2021
It’s impossible to look back at the nose-dived Mercedes from the previous Ambush collection photos and not see some sort of metaphor for this year. On a Zoom call from Tokyo, Yoon Ahn said she didn’t intend for the statement to register so dark, simply that it captured the idea of “being forced to stop.”So what was the statement she set out to make this season? Unsurprisingly, one of comfort and ease. But Ahn is not the type to veer too casual, and she made a point to propose looks that were at once relaxed and ready to wear out in the world. “The last thing you should be concerned about right now is how uncomfortable you feel,” she said. And since how we feel in our clothes is so linked to fabric, she focused on breathable linen, soft wool, and natural-looking denim featuring tactical pockets or assembled as patchwork. “It’s like a quilted blanket but defined in a denim way,” she said of the latter. “I wanted materials that get better with time.”Of course, feeling comfortable is also contingent on fit. Neither cardigan nor jacket, the pieces that tied in front or at the side looked polished without being constricting. Pants were wide yet dimensional rather than shapeless. Knits, as a counterpoint, were clingy and contouring in the manner of Alaïa. “They hold their shape; we call them second skin,” said Ahn. One particularly dynamic dress in Japanese paper yarn twisted around the body like a slanket reimagined as a sexy two-piece ensemble.While pillowy clutch bags worn like sleeves vaguely hinted at how we have been passing these last few months, jewelry responded to a desire for dressing up. Dyed natural quartz evoked rubies, emeralds, and sapphires in glossy gold settings. Ahn liked the idea of precious heirlooms “done in an Ambush way.” There was something to this collection that felt both of-the-moment and more enduring than her previous endeavors—a desirable comfort zone.
28 September 2020
It’s impossible to look back at the nose-dived Mercedes from the previous Ambush collection photos and not see some sort of metaphor for this year. On a Zoom call from Tokyo, Yoon Ahn said she didn’t intend for the statement to register so dark, simply that it captured the idea of “being forced to stop.”So what was the statement she set out to make this season? Unsurprisingly, one of comfort and ease. But Ahn is not the type to veer too casual, and she made a point to propose looks that were at once relaxed and ready to wear out in the world. “The last thing you should be concerned about right now is how uncomfortable you feel,” she said. And since how we feel in our clothes is so linked to fabric, she focused on breathable linen, soft wool, and natural-looking denim featuring tactical pockets or assembled as patchwork. “It’s like a quilted blanket but defined in a denim way,” she said of the latter. “I wanted materials that get better with time.”Of course, feeling comfortable is also contingent on fit. Neither cardigan nor jacket, the pieces that tied in front or at the side looked polished without being constricting. Pants were wide yet dimensional rather than shapeless. Knits, as a counterpoint, were clingy and contouring in the manner of Alaïa. “They hold their shape; we call them second skin,” said Ahn. One particularly dynamic dress in Japanese paper yarn twisted around the body like a slanket reimagined as a sexy two-piece ensemble.While pillowy clutch bags worn like sleeves vaguely hinted at how we have been passing these last few months, jewelry responded to a desire for dressing up. Dyed natural quartz evoked rubies, emeralds, and sapphires in glossy gold settings. Ahn liked the idea of precious heirlooms “done in an Ambush way.” There was something to this collection that felt both of-the-moment and more enduring than her previous endeavors—a desirable comfort zone.
28 September 2020
When we last checked in with Yoon Ahn, she was on her way to meet specialty suppliers and artisans from around Japan. Now back in Paris, she said that scouting mission really shaped the latest Ambush collections—and not just concerning new materials, but the impressions that arrived while on the road. “After spending time in the countryside and developing things together, I decided I wanted to make this season more about slowness,” she said. Let the nosedived Mercedes staged for these photos be your warning: don’t move too fast through life.With these thoughts driving her state of mind, Ahn directed the collection toward comfortable fabrics and a relaxed attitude while keeping silhouettes streamlined and urban. Outerwear was well-developed, and among the standouts were leather blazers with roomier volumes, a trench coat as weightless as a windbreaker, and a fun design that combined an MA-1 and a kimono. Tailored looks across both collections were tweaked with exposed linings and inner canvases, then paired with a padded tabi sandal stacked atop a sneaker sole, and the result felt convincingly on-brand.Intent on pushing the design potential even further, Ahn said she intends to grow the denim side (for this, she did her research in Kojima, now considered Japan’s denim capital). Already, doubled-up jackets and vests and a cloud-effect denim jacquard were signs of category hits. On that note, three jewelry updates came in the form of an elegant A-shaped link for bracelets/necklaces, semiprecious stones as beaded necklaces for the ever-popular e-cigarette holders, and the creative use of matte rubber in bright yellow and industrial blue. Ahn selected that same blue hue for one of the new Converse x Ambush collaborations, a glossy duck boot/sneaker hybrid that felt different than all the current multicolor oddities out there.Altogether, the collections reflected an ambitious level of production and output that, even when not always coherent in theme, conveyed Ahn’s evolving mindset. “I was thinking about stuff that would get better the more you wear it,” she said. “Even if it’s something like simple denim, the beauty is that you wear it over and over again and then it becomes part of your wardrobe and part of you.”
21 January 2020
Yoon Ahn had already left Paris for Japan by the time this Ambush showroom visit took place. When we spoke by phone, she was outside of Tokyo, visiting specialized factories that she is considering for production of her ever-expanding brand. The city, meanwhile, was at the heart of this collection—heartbeing the operative word. “I live in the middle of Tokyo, almost like living in Times Square,” she said. “I wanted to capture that hyper-animated reality coexisting with unreal emotions, because everything there is always on the move.”Ahn’s high-octane translation of this spanned retro-future ’80s tailoring, late-’90s motorbike getups, and present-day streetwear. The statement was Bowie meets BTS. In general, her silhouettes were either influenced by Yohji Yamamoto (deconstructed with space between the clothes and the body) or sci-fi robots (blocky and modular). Her palette of red, green, and pink took direct cues from the glow of neon lights.Hearts, meanwhile, appeared in the corresponding jewelry collection—but in the context of the other automobile-inspired pieces, they had an industrial vibe that read sleek rather than sweet. “I stayed away from cuteness for some time,” said the designer. “Here, I added hearts without them being unbearable.”Ahn has an astute sense of observation and interpretation that serves her well across the collections. Although she is prone to leaning too literal, this is what allows the looks to transcend the “subcultures” that interested her this season to attract a wider commercial market. In case you were wondering, the cyborg Geta sandals were her equivalent of a concept car: sculptural and for show only, at least for now. But they were made, in part, at a car factory, and they give the feeling that she’s eager to shift into higher gear.
29 June 2019
“I wanted to freeze the beach,” said Ambush’s Yoon Ahn during a private appointment at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, where a photo shoot for her Fall lookbook was taking place. Last season, Ahn went for a streetwise-surfer aesthetic. This time, she’s dipped the temperatures—imbuing, along with the plunge, something of a futuristic alien verve into her compelling ready-to-wear. “It’s loosely based on the movieThe Man Who Fell to Earth,” said the designer. “But really it’s about being on the run, on the go . . . about someone, maybe a visitor, who is on their way. And it’s meant to be comfortable. There are a lot of cottons, a lot of wools.”Ahn’s profile has risen dramatically since last summer, due largely to her appointment as Kim Jones’s jewelry chief at Dior Homme (Ambush began as a jewelry line). In the months since, Ahn has collaborated—and will continue to collaborate—with Nike and expanded Ambush’s offerings. This collection is her biggest yet, and it includes another partnership, this time with Converse on brilliant (and sure to be copped) rubberized boots. They feature a raised sole, layered seams, and utilitarian markings likeKeep double laced to hold firmly. They’re one of the strongest shoe styles of the season so far.Cotton sweaters have a faded dye—almost like a sunburn or a washout, the consequence of polar glare. Pants have a snowboard kick, and jackets are technical, insulated, but most of all, interesting (see a super-cropped glacial blue bomber paired with statement, elbow-reaching gloves). The clothes, very much like Ahn herself, retain a relaxed but decisive character.Lastly, the jewelry: This is where Ahn’s creativity physically shines. She noted that charms sell well; for Fall, she’s added scorpions, spiders, a lightbulb, even a clasp that holds a plastic water bottle. Chain links were inset with pavé crystals, and lighter holders returned. But most satisfying were USB sticks plated in silver or gold. Said Ahn: “Whatever planet you end up on, you can take your data with you.” Icy.
18 January 2019
Yoon Ahn is riding the perfect wave. Her label, Ambush, has risen from a jewelry outfit into a bona fide ready-to-wear line; she has a sizable personal audience of somewhere around a quarter million on Instagram; and Kim Jones has appointed her as Dior Homme’s jewelry lead. Her work there will appear later this week—“Kim gives me a lot of freedom,” she said yesterday in Paris—but at the moment, in the courtyard of the Atelier Brancusi, Ambush was the sole focus. “This is sort of . . . the teenage version,” added Ahn with a laugh.Her Spring collection was young skewing, sure, but it was also very well done and rinsed with a mature, worldly sense of laid-back, natural instinct. Ahn’s wellspring was a visit to the Big Island in Hawaii (she expressed condolences to those affected by the recent eruptions of the Kilauea volcano) and its surrounding waters, calling them “spiritual.” “Ultimately it’s about keeping it simple, and you know, with surfing, you can’t resist. You just have to go with what the ocean gives you.”That thinking swelled up into myriad reference points having to do with island living—and it felt personal, given Ahn’s time spent in Hawaii as an infant and the fact that she still visits once or twice a year. Jewelry, her forte, has crystals (“Because crystals are made of sand”); her best-selling lighter holders are now available in fluorescent colors; earrings will feature sterling renderings of airport souvenir key chains; and necklaces will drip with linked metal daisy chain leis. On the clothes tip, Ahn introduced functioning wetsuits (must-haves), patchworked linen tops, big and breezy shirting, and a mock life vest as a puffer jacket. A fringed oversize straw hat was lent a baseball cap base, with a gothicAembossed at its center. It was exactly the kind of thing you’d expect from a talent like her—recognizable because of its inspiration but shown in a refreshing way. Winning the heat: two metallic gold and mercurial surfboards that can actually be used, shellacked with automobile paint in Japan. “That would be so cool; it would blend with the water,” Ahn said, pointing to the silver one.
20 June 2018
Yoon Ahn is riding the perfect wave. Her label, Ambush, has risen from a jewelry outfit into a bona fide ready-to-wear line; she has a sizable personal audience of somewhere around a quarter million on Instagram; and Kim Jones has appointed her as Dior Homme’s jewelry lead. Her work there will appear later this week—“Kim gives me a lot of freedom,” she said yesterday in Paris—but at the moment, in the courtyard of the Atelier Brancusi, Ambush was the sole focus. “This is sort of . . . the teenage version,” added Ahn with a laugh.Her Spring collection was young skewing, sure, but it was also very well done and rinsed with a mature, worldly sense of laid-back, natural instinct. Ahn’s wellspring was a visit to the Big Island in Hawaii (she expressed condolences to those affected by the recent eruptions of the Kilauea volcano) and its surrounding waters, calling them “spiritual.” “Ultimately it’s about keeping it simple, and you know, with surfing, you can’t resist. You just have to go with what the ocean gives you.”That thinking swelled up into myriad reference points having to do with island living—and it felt personal, given Ahn’s time spent in Hawaii as an infant and the fact that she still visits once or twice a year. Jewelry, her forte, has crystals (“Because crystals are made of sand”); her best-selling lighter holders are now available in fluorescent colors; earrings will feature sterling renderings of airport souvenir key chains; and necklaces will drip with linked metal daisy chain leis. On the clothes tip, Ahn introduced functioning wetsuits (must-haves), patchworked linen tops, big and breezy shirting, and a mock life vest as a puffer jacket. A fringed oversize straw hat was lent a baseball cap base, with a gothicAembossed at its center. It was exactly the kind of thing you’d expect from a talent like her—recognizable because of its inspiration but shown in a refreshing way. Winning the heat: two metallic gold and mercurial surfboards that can actually be used, shellacked with automobile paint in Japan. “That would be so cool; it would blend with the water,” Ahn said, pointing to the silver one.
20 June 2018
When asked whether she considers herself a fashion designer now that her label, Ambush, has become increasingly multifaceted, Yoon Ahn demurred and replied, “I would rather think of myself as a storyteller.” On that basis, and after today’s presentation, the stories she tells continue to be partially personal, a little bit nostalgic, and translated into tangible things that express a fair degree of wit. With this sophomore ready-to-wear collection, she revisited the outdoorsy, functional aesthetic of where she grew up just outside Seattle. Until this summer, she hadn’t visited for six years. Once back in Tokyo, she had gained a new appreciation for the open air, the rainy weather, and apparel brands such as Eddie Bauer that cater to this lifestyle.Catering to her lifestyle is, of course, a different story, and she found ways to make Eddie Bauer-ish clothing appear youthful and on trend. Obvious standouts included the rain gear with dramatic volumes; cargo pants vented at the knee and worn at half length; athletic pants in dressier, lightweight wool; and fleece you wouldn’t be embarrassed to wear. Polyester suiting nodded to teenage thrift store shopping; this, Ahn said, was the reason for the slightly gawky proportions rather than inferior construction—although the distinction was not as clear as it could have been. She reminded that the print of poppies was a Nirvana reference—their video for “Heart-Shaped Box.”Ahn would hardly qualify as a grunge girl, yet she can figure out which references will resonate as her found-objects jewelry; this season, she settled on clothespin clips, guitar-pick pendants, and street chains. Most noteworthy, though, were the rows of colorful glass beads that splashed from open cuffs, and also from the edges of a gold headband, making for an enchanting, lighter alternative to drop earrings. As a significant improvement on an underexploited design idea, it stands a good chance of trickling down.
22 January 2018
When asked whether she considers herself a fashion designer now that her label, Ambush, has become increasingly multifaceted, Yoon Ahn demurred and replied, “I would rather think of myself as a storyteller.” On that basis, and after today’s presentation, the stories she tells continue to be partially personal, a little bit nostalgic, and translated into tangible things that express a fair degree of wit. With this sophomore ready-to-wear collection, she revisited the outdoorsy, functional aesthetic of where she grew up just outside Seattle. Until this summer, she hadn’t visited for six years. Once back in Tokyo, she had gained a new appreciation for the open air, the rainy weather, and apparel brands such as Eddie Bauer that cater to this lifestyle.Catering to her lifestyle is, of course, a different story, and she found ways to make Eddie Bauer-ish clothing appear youthful and on trend. Obvious standouts included the rain gear with dramatic volumes; cargo pants vented at the knee and worn at half length; athletic pants in dressier, lightweight wool; and fleece you wouldn’t be embarrassed to wear. Polyester suiting nodded to teenage thrift store shopping; this, Ahn said, was the reason for the slightly gawky proportions rather than inferior construction—although the distinction was not as clear as it could have been. She reminded that the print of poppies was a Nirvana reference—their video for “Heart-Shaped Box.”Ahn would hardly qualify as a grunge girl, yet she can figure out which references will resonate as her found-objects jewelry; this season, she settled on clothespin clips, guitar-pick pendants, and street chains. Most noteworthy, though, were the rows of colorful glass beads that splashed from open cuffs, and also from the edges of a gold headband, making for an enchanting, lighter alternative to drop earrings. As a significant improvement on an underexploited design idea, it stands a good chance of trickling down.
22 January 2018
According to theAmbushschool of style, you should be wearing your detention slip as a badge of pride. Titled Hues, but really an homage to John Hughes andThe Breakfast Club, the collection played out like the accessories equivalent of word play. This included graduation rings, pins resembling pop can tops, a Kelly bag/lunch box hybrid, security tag earrings, and the aforementioned detention slip brooch—all in sterling silver. And all, for the first time, shown on models, posed against a stylized locker room backdrop wearing the brand’s burgeoning clothing line. Here, in keeping with the high school theme, they embodied various archetypes—the overachiever, the prom queen, the varsity jock—in looks that were, to state the obvious, too cool for high school.As preternaturally cool cofounderYoon Ahnpointed out,The Breakfast Club’s coming-of-age story dovetailed with the brand’s growth. “We’re coming to the realization of what we can be,” she said, describing today—and even herLVMH Prizefinalist status—as a graduation of sorts. In general, the clothes—all made in Japan—were a fairly accurate depiction of how kids customize their style and experiment with their identities; only here, all those awkward suiting alterations were deliberate, the tape on a sweatshirt was permanently fixed, and the brainiac had more edge than the princess. The outerwear, in particular, transcended youth culture: the trench that could be unsnapped at the waist, a deconstructed varsity jacket, and the windowpane topcoat with a trompe l’oeil shirt placket. But even when other pieces could have benefitted from more finesse, the attitude was undeniable. Ahn said she notices that people gravitate towards the designs that sync with their character, at which point, this reviewer realized that her favorite piece was the Band-Aid ring.
26 June 2017