Cavalli e Nastri Archive -- Archival piece preserved as part of Cavalli e Nastri's fashion heritage and research collection.An iconic piece from the Issey Miyake "IKKO TANAKA ISSEY MIYAKE" project, this Graphic Design Coat belongs to the third volume of the celebrated collaboration series released in 2018--an ongoing tribute to the legendary Japanese graphic designer Ikko Tanaka.More than a garment, the coat functions as a moving canvas, translating Tanaka's visual language into wearable form through Miyake's distinctive approach to volume, movement, and textile innovation. The piece exemplifies the designer's enduring exploration of the relationship between body, space, and graphic composition.The back of the coat features one of Tanaka's most recognisable works from the "Work: Q" series (1972), a composition built through bold geometric abstraction using spheres, cylinders, primary colors, and deep black contrasts. Originally conceived within the language of modernist graphic design, the artwork is reinterpreted here across the surface of the garment, gaining dimensionality and motion as the body moves.The oversized sport-coat silhouette provides an ideal architectural framework for the graphic intervention. Characterized by clean lines and generous proportions, the cut allows the printed imagery to unfold dynamically rather than remain static, transforming the original two-dimensional design into a kinetic visual experience.This collaboration series, first introduced in 2016, was conceived by Issey Miyake as a tribute to his longtime friend and collaborator Ikko Tanaka following the designer's passing in 2002. Rather than treating Tanaka's works as simple decorative prints, Miyake approached the project as an exploration of how graphic art could exist within movement and everyday wear, preserving the vibrancy and optimism central to Tanaka's creative universe.Today, pieces from the "IKKO TANAKA ISSEY MIYAKE" series are regarded as highly collectible examples of interdisciplinary Japanese design, where fashion, graphic art, and spatial experimentation converge into a singular archival expression.
