Mihara Yasuhiro Spring Summer 2013 Collection

Little things fascinate Mihara Yasuhiro in big ways: bicycle spokes, rucksack frames, camouflage. They push him to push boundaries, stereotypes, and proportions. They shift his design language and drive his fluency in the unusual and quirky.

This season is no exception. He celebrates cycling within the realm of Otaku—Japanese for individuals with obsessive, geeky hobbies. Designs are constructed for the nerd within the peloton of daily commuters. Materials are technical: high density and lightweight, transparent yet waterproof. Bags reconfigure panniers, equipping rucksacks with stools. Footwear is reinvented with fully reflective, one-piece molded constructions. And then, he slaps typically muted cityscapes with a brighter, more comical camouflage: the UnCAMO graphic print exposes rather than hides. It’s an intentional shift so typical of Mihara: manipulating the mundane, toying with convention, and starting an inside joke among the outsiders from Tokyo to Timbuktu.