Malamute (Q3263)

Tokyo is currently under construction. As the city preps for the upcoming 2020 Olympic Games, large portions of its landscape are being reimagined. For residents like Malamute designer Mari Odaka the process has been a source of anticipation and stress. “When I walk along the construction, I feel some fear and anxiety that I cannot express in words,” Odaka wrote in the collection notes for her second runway show, noting that the winds of change flow through everything. She channeled her concerns into clothes that featured traditional techniques and modern playfulness.Films focused on the perils of immortality—’90s sci-fi thrillerGattacaand Jim Jarmusch’s stylish vampire mood pieceOnly Lovers Left Alive—served as inspiration for pieces that felt lively. Jacquard separates in red and blue with asymmetrical skirts offered a riff on suiting, while cuffed denim and deconstructed blazers provided options for casual situations. A knitwear specialist, Odaka experimented with both hugging dresses featuring woven pleats and diaphanous skirts woven from gold lamé thread. Oversize scarves with yarn patterns were appealing, as were a series of customizable looks that offered a literal interpretation of the change theme, like the sweaters that zipped away to reveal flashes of shoulder or bare leg.The show may have ended with a flowing belted robe with shredded fabric detail, but its wow moment came earlier with the introduction of a floor-length embroidered puffer coat that took the cold weather item into baroque territory with diamond embroidery and luminous material.