A Collection Inspired by the Snail
Issey Miyake (1938–2022) has now borrowed this technique. As a seven-year-old, he survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. He went on to become one of the most influential names in world fashion, designing Steve Jobs’s iconic black turtleneck. In the late 1980s, he developed his own pleating technology.
His brand HOMME PLISSÉ ISSEY MIYAKE unveiled a capsule collection inspired by The Snail at Tate Modern on September 16. Ten pieces, a pleated cardigan, tunic, T-shirt, crossbody bag, scarf. Colors straight from Matisse’s canvas, white, black, orange, emerald green, purple.
Architecture as a Philosophy of Dress
Miyake rejected the label “fashion designer” his entire life. Instead, he saw his work as an exploration of the space between the body and the fabric. He called this concept “A Piece of Cloth” (A-POC), essentially an architectural principle.
That’s why architect Tadao Ando collaborated with him for years. In fact, they co-founded the Tokyo design museum 21_21 DESIGN SIGHT together. Ando’s roof is made from a single folded sheet of steel. And Miyake does exactly the same thing with fabric, one piece of material bent into structure.
Foto: © Hayes Davidson and Herzog & de Meuron
Performance in The Tanks
The collection was unveiled during the brand’s second OPEN STUDIO. The performance One One One took place in The Tanks with Dresden Frankfurt Dance Company. Choreographer Ioannis Mandafounis led the dancers. They uncovered pleated pieces hidden beneath the floor. Through improvised contact with the audience, they gradually put them on. The finale: a large-scale composition of pleated pieces, a living image of The Snail.
© ISSEY MIYAKE INC. © 2026 Succession H. Matisse / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Miyake and Fine Art
This isn’t Miyake’s first collaboration with art. Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang once set off gunpowder directly onto pleated fabric during a performance at the Cartier Foundation. It left scorched trails of smoke and ash behind. Photographer Irving Penn documented his collections for decades. Not as fashion, but as abstract sculptures.
Even the building has its own story of transformation. Tate Modern was designed by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron. Today, they’re icons of world architecture. They turned the former Bankside Power Station into a gallery. A space that once generated energy now hosts a performance about turning paper into motion.
When and Where
The collection is available for a limited time starting September 17 at the Terrace Shop in Tate Modern and on shop.tate.org.uk. From January 2027, it will also be available at selected ISSEY MIYAKE stores in Tokyo, Osaka, and London. The Snail hangs permanently, freely accessible, in Tate Modern’s collection.
