Known for Native American influences and sneakerheads’ obsession over the coveted FBT moccasins, Visvim Creative Director Hiroki Nakamura has quickly transformed the Japanese-based brand into a cult classic favorite.
Launched in 2000, Nakamura intricately handcrafts with local artisans an assortment of lightweight shirts, jackets, blazer, pants and denim. For Fall ’15, the designer drew inspiration from pieces such as the denim shirt worn by Paul Newman in the 1967 western film “Cool Hand Luke” and from Hawaiian-style bowling shirts from the 1950s, which were hand-painted Koi fish to add for Visvim flair.
This season, Nakamura has opened up his archive of personal items that he’s collected over the years to showcase how his inspirations come from all over the world.
“Rather than focusing on one concept or inspiration, this year he wanted to show that his ideas come from everywhere—same as how all his clothes and accessories are made and sourced from all over the world. For example, fabrics made and dyed in Japan, umbrella and bags made in France, suede sourced in Sweden, and raffia shoes hand knit in Morocco,” explained Visvim Publicist Go Kasai.
Nakamura’s Spring ’16 lineup offers an abundant mix of West and East influences: a Japanese trench with a hand-painted seashells inspired by Montauk, New York; pinstriped baseball jerseys in denim fabrics; long-sleeve collared shirts with a striped panel detail; and suits that were made from vintage Japanese woolens.
He has also designed a women’s collection, WMV, with his wife, Kelsi. WMV offers lightweight sundresses in vibrant prints—complementary styles to the brand’s handsomely, rugged men’s collection.
