Issey Miyake, fashion pioneer and designer of Steve Jobs’ turtlenecks, dies at 84

Photo by Pierre Vauthey/Sygma/Sygma via Getty Images

I had never held a piece by Issey Miyake before I flew home to Japan in the middle of the year.

The clothes were painted against the white walls. Store attendees strolled about as travelers with luggage fumbled with scarves and tried to figure out how to wear their clothes.

The way movement is such an integral element in Pleats Please by Issey Miyake is so satisfying and delivers such a sensuous experience pic.twitter.com/0rlCpoG9VW

— mar (@vogueheroine) July 17, 2020

The two-dimensional flatness of the garments is similar to how Miyake conceived of clothing. The designer died at the age of 84 on August 5th and left behind a body of work that was as innovative as it was stylish.

Miyake told The New York Times that he was most interested in people. The closest thing to all humans is clothing.

Miyake is best known for designing the black mock neck worn by Steve Jobs. When Jobs visited the Sony headquarters in the 1980s, he was struck by the matching work jackets the employees wore. Jobs tried to sell a uniform to Apple employees. Miyake supplied hundreds of identical shirts for him to wear.

A little tech meets fashion:



Steve Jobs’ uniform wasn’t just an ordinary black turtle neck. His black turtle necks were always Issey Miyake. Issey Miyake actually retired this turtleneck after the death of Steve Jobs in 2011



Here’s a THREAD on how it came to be his staple pic.twitter.com/D3fhmxV0bR

— Shelby Ivey Christie (@bronze_bombSHEL) June 27, 2019

One of the designer's labels is instantly recognizable for its cutting-edge techniques used in creation and design. In the 1980's, Miyake and his team developed a method of treating fabric that created rows of micro pleats that could be folded, washed, and used in suitcases.

I decided what I would take away from the store while I was in it. I understood what Miyake was talking about when I tried on the piece. Like water filling up a clear glass, the walls of pleats expand to accommodate the unique body of the person wearing it. The clothes, above all, are meant to reflect life.

I settled on a pair of emerald green three quarter length trousers with invisible pockets and an elasticized waistband at the airport shop. I bought them even though they were too expensive for me.

I take the pants with me wherever I go, from the beach to the grocery store. They are timeless, seasonless, and occasionless, which make them perfect for anything. Issey is Miyake's first name, which means "one life" in Japanese, and is poetic in its homage to the people he created for.