SETCHU X DAVIES & SON INTRODUCES EASTERN TECHNIQUES TO SAVILE ROW TAILORING

The encounter of East and West and their respective cultures and crafts is a guiding principle for Satoshi Kuwata, the Savile Row-trained Japanese designer of Setchu. The designer also looks at the seemingly polar opposite approaches to garment design: one where flat shapes become three-dimensional when worn, versus creating a suit via cuts and darts. Kuwata has worked with Givenchy, Edun, Kanye West, and Gareth Pugh, all while developing his eye for sharp tailoring at institutions like H. Huntsman and Sons on Savile Row. He was the recipient of the 2023 LVMH Prize.

Davies & Son is the oldest operating tailor shop on London’s Savile Row. It has served generations of clients in the tailoring tradition. For the very first time in its history Davies & Son, with the assistance of Kuwata, is exploring another way to make things while being faithful to the Savile Row craft.

The Setchu and Davies & Son collaboration consists of three non-gender-specific outfits: one single-breasted black herringbone jacket with matching trousers, a collarless single-breasted black herringbone long jacket with matching trousers, and a double-breasted white cashmere coat with trousers. A pair of laceless bespoke shoes molded from one single piece of leather, crafted by renowned cobbler George Cleverley, completes the outfits. The color black, rendered in a textured herringbone cloth, is an exemption from the Savile Row norm, which normally only accepts black for specific occasions, not for “daywear.”

What makes Setchu and Davies & Son technically challenging is the Savile Row execution of the Setchu jacket, which features ironed folds that flatten the jacket so it can be stored in a box, much like a kimono. Attaining the same effect on a traditionally tailored piece, with linings, internal interfacing, and canvas, required much tailoring finesse. The fold is not simply pressed, but the canvas is cut where the fold is placed and then hand-stitched to become functional. Such technical challenges represent the true essence of the project and the terrain in which Japanese culture and Western tailoring meet. Far from showing off, the subtle details are apparent only when the garment is worn and only to the wearer.

The Setchu and Davies & Son project was unveiled at Palazzo Venier in Venice on April 17th, during the opening days of the Venice Biennale. The special installation featured a series of Japanese objects that work as vessels and added a multisensorial frame to the presentation, bringing to the fore the all-encompassing sense of craft that defines the Setchu ethos and its roots in Japanese traditions. The objects were a huge ceiling paper lantern, the intense shade of black obtained with sumi ink, lit from within with a candle; a white ceramic stool; handmade black tatami mats customized with Setchu fabric; Japanese organic wax candles; incense; and a giant black bow made with silk braided husahimo (silk round braided) cord.

Fittings going forward will happen in Milan, with Satoshi from Setchu, in London at Davies & Son, or in NYC when the Davies & Son team travels.