What a wild ride. From Undercover‘s monumental 35th anniversary collection (a revisit of designer Jun Takahashi 2004’s But Beautiful… Part Parasitic Part Stuffed collection), to Luke & Lucie Meier’s final collection for JIL SANDER, the surrealist silhouette’s of Junya Watanabe, Sarah Burton’s excellent debut collection for Givenchy, and Satoshi Kondo’s playful and ambiguous volumes for ISSEY MIYAKE. Champ Editor in Chief Joanna Kawecki highlights this season’s key looks and collections.

UNDERCOVER

Celebrating 35 years of the brand, designer Jun Takahashi revisited one of his favourite past collections for the occasion. UNDERCOVER FW04’s But Beautiful… Part Parasitic Part Stuffed was reimagined into current times. The result was an amalgamation of future nostalgia re-envisioned from the style inspiration of Patti Smith and otherworldly textile artist Anne-Valerie Dupond. ‘The design was developed through trial and error based on what it might be like if Patti Smith wore clothes reminiscent of handcrafted stuffed animals,’ notes Takahashi. Takahashi, endlessly imaginative and original, encapsulates the magic of fashion. Led by his own creative and personal expression, Takahashi remains purely punk in his approach to the art of clothes, finding beauty in the obscure whilst welcoming poetic chaos. In the collection, formal evening looks were examined with sophisticated suiting crafted with gorgeously-detailed angel-winged jacketing and sculptural dresses with attitude and character — their puffed nylon silhouettes reinterpreted as dreamy, bulbous forms. Allowing the art of clothes to dream again. 

ISSEY MIYAKE

Ambiguously titled as [N]either [N]or yet always filled with a deeply layered complexity and nuance, designer Satoshi Kondo’s latest AUTUMN WINTER 2025/26 collection for ISSEY MIYAKE was just that. Beginning with eight performers executing signature stylised movements alongside displayed garments —  based on the conceptual One Minute Sculptures of Austrian artist Erwin Wurm. ‘When garments are created this way, they not only challenge the viewer’s preconception of what is ordinary, but also prompt a sense of vacillation, in trying to define what is evident. Qualities found in these garments that seem liminal and unsettling may be manifestations of a new aesthetic. The ambiguity of the many in-between’s offer the freedom of wearing in one’s own way and the excitement of all the possibilities that are yet to be discovered within the garments,’ explained in the show notes. [Abstract and Concrete] [Body and Object] [Nature & Fabrication] [Clothing & Sculpture] — these key references played centre stage for the beauty in the ambiguity of Kondo’s vision.

JUNYA WATANABE

‘I’m fascinated by creating clothing that appears to be unrealistic. This time, I created everyday clothing from a cubist perspective.’ Sculptural, origami-like volumes of black leather — both symetrical and asymmetrical, prismatic and tubular forms — dominated Junya Watanabe’s latest AW25 collection presented in Paris. Opening with pure black ensembles, the contoured suiting of sleek motorcycle leather jackets with black trousers in crocodile-print or smoother leathers. The looks transitioned into versions in denim, cotton trench, padded nylon, fur and velour — each as equally as avant-garde and cubist-inspired as the other. Ever-infusing his passion for music into collections, this season centred around Watanabe’s great admiration for the iconic late musician Jimi Hendrix. When Watanabe began designing clothes around 30-40 years ago, it was Hendrix’s music that he was most heavily inspired by. That inspiration was reignited by the 2024 release raretities-and-outtakes version of the album Electric Lady Studios; A Jimi Hendrix Vision. An incredible collection of pure Watanabe, in all its geometric and three-dimensional forms.

JIL SANDER

Lead designers Luke & Lucie Meier present the AW25-26 collection as their last for the Italian fashion house. Set to the ever-stellar soundtrack of music collaborator Benji B and show set design by longtime collaborators Back Of The House creating a dark and moody atmospheric interior. Femininity and elegance dominated the collection — fringed formal dresses, sleek grey marle leather ensembles to satin shirting and gowns — were accompanied by contrasting textures of silk laced utilitarian cotton forms. Emotional and celebrated — the final captured the enduring elegance the designer pair brought to the house. ‘Luke and I are touched to have presented our last collection for Jil Sander after 8 years with the house. We want to thank everyone that has been involved and contributed their skill, creativity and energy. We are so proud of all we have achieved tighter, and even more proud of the wonderful friendships we have made.’

COMMES DES GARCONS

‘Small is mighty’, announced Comme des Garçons founder and designer Rei Kawakubo. Bold, undulating curvatures and wave-like formulations dominated the mighty collection presented in Paris. Kawakubo’s enduring unapologetic individuality and designs of identifiable wearable art was exampled perfectly in her latest collection. For AW25, celebrated grand volumes were complemented with giant, enveloping brimmed hats. Geometric business suiting, deconstructed tailoring, ruffled pinstripes and houndstooth, and wildly layered tartan dresses were just a mere segment of the monumental collection. Eschewing trends, Kawakubo’s latest collection further secured her as a global force to be reckoned with.

GIVENCHY

Unobtrusive yet daring. What can we say? Sarah Burton’s Givenchy AW25 is a poetic becoming for the legacy fashion house. The collection exudes that je ne sais quoi. The new Givenchy woman is determined and self-aware yet sophisticated and chic. For Burton’s first collection with the house after departing McQueen, the Brit certainly understood the French assignment. Accentuated waistlines drove sensuous silhouettes. Oversized earrings balanced generous volumes of sculptural dresses that enveloped models in undulating forms. The collection examples a breath of fresh air for legacy houses that often rely on designer fame rather than understand and elevate the wearer. Burton’s impressive entry certainly sets a precedent for all.