Kingston School of Art
Specialisms: Menswear / Atelier - Pattern Cutting / Textiles - Print
Location: London, United Kingdom
First Name: Rio
Last Name: Aso
Specialisms: Menswear / Atelier - Pattern Cutting / Textiles - Print
Sectors:
My Location: London, United Kingdom
University / College: Kingston School of Art
Course / Program Title: Fashion BA Hons
I am a menswear designer with a focus on creative pattern cutting and print. The theme of my work explores sense of nostalgia and security that I get from my childhood. Each of my collections aims to transport its wearers back to their childhood and provide them with the sense of security through clothes. My collection is realised by the experimental garment construction and bold prints that embody my personal narrative.
‘Secure base’ in attachment theory refers to the sense of security that is provided through relationships between a child and caregiver. Memories of the childhood relationships continue to provide us with an emotional safe cavern. ‘How can clothes carry childhood memories and serve as a secure base of a wearer?’, this questioning was the starting point of my collection. Building my visual narrative upon my own secure base, particularly moments spent with my mother reading me picture books in bed, the whimsical aesthetic of Japanese picture book artworks that I was enchanted by as a kid was translated in my colours, prints, and textile. The silhouettes aimed to make the wearers’ bodies look as if they were transported back to their childhood. By looking into photos of my childhood and observing children's clothes, my pattern cutting was developed based on children’s ill-fitted shapes and proportions to transform the child-like silhouettes into contemporary menswear design. Each look evokes a nostalgic journey to transport the wearers back to childhood. Ultimately, my collection serves as a wearable homage to the enduring comfort of a secure base.