Yohji Yamamoto at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London

The Victoria and Albert Museum in London is preparing to host, for the first time in the United Kingdom, an extensive retrospective entirely dedicated to Yohji Yamamoto. Over 80 works, including menswear and womenswear pieces considered among the most representative of his work, will be on display in the evocative halls of the world's most important museum of art and design, from March 12 to July 10, 2011. Four months to discover and appreciate one of the most influential and enigmatic designers of the last 40 years and to participate in the many events organized to introduce visitors to the artist's complex aesthetic dimension: talks, guided tours, courses, workshops, special performances, and much more.

Yamamoto, with his visionary and unconventional style, has provided vital impulses to the fashion system, opening up entirely innovative and radical scenarios, the scope of which can be summarized as a deep rupture within established norms and patterns. His particular sensitivity toward unknown or overlooked materials, bold and sometimes ironic geometric solutions, and a personal interpretation of color not only represent the constituent elements of a profound transformation within deep-rooted Western conformism, but have also given shape and voice to a different model of femininity. You can get an idea of this by visiting the Wapping Project Bankside in person, one of the London spaces involved in the V&A Museum's initiative, for the photography exhibition Yohji’s Women. The exhibition will feature works by internationally renowned photographers who have collaborated with Yamamoto since his debut, such as Nick Knight, Inez Van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, Peter Lindbergh, Craig McDean, Sarah Moon, Paolo Roversi, and Max Vadukul.

The selection allows one to admire a feminine beauty expressed through clues and qualities that we often overlook, such as reserve, intellectual independence, and a strong sense of self. Women portrayed in their multifaceted character expressions, and therefore intense and concretely sensual. A humanity enhanced and described by conceptually sophisticated clothes and images.

Finally, one can head to the Wapping Project to see the installation created by Masao Nihei, a set and lighting designer who is a long-time collaborator of the designer. A huge white dress supported by bamboo canes will be set up, immersed in surreal scenic effects of lights and waves that pass through and ruffle it at regular ten-minute intervals.
The work, absolutely not to be missed on the long Yohji tour, embodies a metaphor for the revolutionary and destabilizing scope of his work.

Locations and dates of the exhibitions:

Yohji Yamamoto, Victoria and Albert Museum, 12 March – 10 July 2011

The exhibition catalog is available for purchase online. Yohji’s Women, The Wapping Project Bankside, 12 March - 14 May 2011
Open Tue-Sat from 10am to 6pm, Monday by appointment.
Tel. 020 7981 9851; info@thewappingprojectbankside.com;

Yohji Making Waves, The Wapping Project,
12 March – 14 July 2011
Wapping Hydraulic Power Station, Wapping Wall, E1W 3SG
Open Monday – Friday noon to midnight; Saturday and Sunday from 10.00am.
Closed on Sunday night.