Yoshiyo Abe, designer of women's fashion brand petite robe noire, has launched her new brand, YOSHIYO, for the 2015-16 Autumn/Winter collection. Working with Berlin-based contemporary artist Aiko Tezuka, who inspired her, Yoshiyo will open a "dialogue"-themed pop-up store on August 26th at Stage #3 on the third floor of the Isetan Shinjuku Main Building. Tezuka, who returned to Japan temporarily to participate in an exhibition currently being held at the National Art Center, Tokyo, met Abe at her office to discuss her thoughts on creation and the relationship between art and fashion. Abe and Tezuka met in New York through an acquaintance last October. They subsequently shared their shared passions and concerns through online conversations, and found a kindred spirit. Women in their 30s are often concerned with balancing work, personal life, and family. As women who lead teams, they are constantly thinking about how to create quality products while also achieving fulfillment in all three areas. And while fashion and art may have different forms of output, they share many commonalities, such as the thoughts, doubts, and questions they share about "making things."

■ Thoughts on Creation: "Connecting the Old and the New"

Abe, who is a fashion enthusiast, celebrated her seventh anniversary this year since founding her brand. During that time, rather than promoting trends through fashion, Abe has produced a variety of creations that seem to answer the question, "What does it mean to make things?" In fact, her brand's costume jewelry and clothing are based on the consistent theme of "connecting the old and the new." One of her driving forces seems to be her respect and admiration for traditional materials and techniques.

Tezuka is an artist who pulls threads from finished textiles and reconstructs their patterns. For example, at a fashion-themed exhibition in Zurich, she exhibited a work in which she pulled out the weft threads that make up the textile from scarves by color from H&M, a brand synonymous with fast fashion, and arranged them. By doing so, the elements that make up the scarf, which may appear identical, can be seen in different shapes. Whether handmade or mass-produced, textiles are undoubtedly created by weaving threads together. The time it takes to construct this object and the act of remaking elements that have once been transformed into visible forms raise questions about the concept of time. Through her creations, Abe, too, questions the present and values.

■New Challenge

We asked Abe what prompted her to start Yoshiyo. "It's been seven years since I started Petit Robe Noir, and I've come to understand what people want from Petit. At the same time, I've found that each year it's become a struggle for me to have the courage to break away from the image that's expected of me." So by separating the brands—Petit Robe Noir for costume jewelry and Yoshiyo for clothing—she explains, "At Yoshiyo, I want to be able to incorporate my own interpretation of 'creating things' into my clothing without hesitation."

He continued, "I'm in the fashion world, and I know that ultimately, my work has to be in a form that can be worn. That's why I want to think about the production process, and at least a little about the meaning of 'creating something' in a world that's so overflowing with things."

In response, Tezuka replied, "I sensed from Abe that he wants to make a difference in fashion as well. I feel that he's someone who takes a different approach than making clothes that respond to the needs of society." It's not hard to imagine that this pure passion for creativity can sometimes lead to conflicts about making things. Abe and Tezuka were able to share their conflicts as creators, and this brought them closer together.

To be continued in the second part.