Onitsuka Tiger AW22 Champions '80s Japanese Style Codes
With an emphasis on layering, a signature styling tactic in Japanese ceremonial dressing.
For AW22, Japanese fashion label Onitsuka Tiger continues to embrace its signature blend of sports, heritage and innovation. Under a simple moniker, “Shadow,” creative director Andrea Pompilio pays tribute to the 1980s, when Japanese influences of “purity and austerity” disrupted Western design codes.
“Westerners found the Japanese fashion scene in the eighties disruptive, but in Japan, it was just a part of everyday life,” the brand explains in its collection notes. “A group of youthful boys dressed in black, with layers and unexpected volumes that depicted the underground culture scene of the time are reflected in Onitsuka Tiger’s collection.”
Taking a contemporary approach to that era’s defining elements, the range relies heavily on layering, a typical styling tactic in Japanese ceremonial dressing. Inside, the brand introduces ultra-oversized T-shirts constructed from heavy cotton and graphically embroidered kaftans, or overdresses.
Flame and flower prints mark the only distinctive embellishments across an otherwise simple and minimalist line. Leaning into gothic style codes, the collection delivers modern velour dresses, Sukajan tribute jackets and drawstring mini dresses. Rounding out the range, the imprint offers nylon jackets, boa coats, maxi Bermuda pants, utilitarian waistcoats and balaclavas.
Onitsuka Tiger’s AW22 collection is now available to shop on the brand’s website. Take a look at the range in the gallery above.
In more fashion news, take a first look at the upcoming Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama collaboration.
