Double O

Brand of ready-to-wear created by Kenichi Nakayama and Rie Watanabe in 1999. The two Japanese designers became partners after meeting at a preview in a London museum. It is a union that combines the worlds of art and fashion. Nakayama graduated in 1994 and worked with Issey Miyake on the Pleats Please line. He designed fabric for Giorgio Armani and for several theatrical productions, and has a past as choreographer. He comes from a tradition of kimono manufacturing and design. Watanabe has worked as an art director in publishing and in Japanese television. They are both keen on art, music, and dance, and presented their first Collection, called Jet Lag, in 1999 at the Royal College of Art, inspired by plane travel. In 2000, they presented the Fog Bound Collection, with real “performances” in places such as subway stops and supermarkets. Following the idea that everyday life has a poetic side, and that every garment can be worn in a different way, they design asymmetric, multifunctional clothes in bright shades and colors, often using denim.