JUUN.J interview with VOGUE Italy

"The clothes are more beautiful when they are moving"

Name
Juun.J.


Website
http://www.juunj.com


Blog
http://rawsoulpic.blogspot.com/


Education
After graduating from Esmod in Séoul in 1992, Juun.J designed for men's fashion labels Chiffons, Club Monaco and NIX. Then thanks to his skills and the experience he had developed, in 1999 he launched his own line called Lone Costume which he presented at Seoul Collection from 2001 to 2006.


The turning point
His own name was like a lucky charm to him and ultimately what brought him success. In 2007 he presented a new brand named after himself, Juun.J, and since then his collections have made it to the Menswear Fashion Week in Paris season after season.

Often he participates in the Fashion Week's calendar of other International fashion centres: for instance, he was Foreign Guest Designer at the Hellenic Fashion Week and at the Modny Desant Festival in 2008 and in 2010 took part in Seoul and Barcellona Fashion Weeks.


Awards and nominations
The finalist nomination to the Swiss Textiles Awards is only the last of a series which saw the Korean designer being awarded with recognition. He was also among the eight men of the year nominated by Arena Korea in 2008 and won for two consecutive years the Samsun Fashion Design Fund in 2009 and 2010.


Challenge for the future
Magazine Dong-a nominated Juun.J as one of the more representative Fashion Designers of 2020 fashion.


His strength
Unpredictability.

Season after season, Juun.J renews the mood and style of his collections without ever repeating himself but always proving outstanding sartorial skills. These traits of his has allowed him to shift from one project to the next and be always successful in whatever he does.


Alternative projects
Since 2005, he collaborates with a few very important names in the fashion world, as well as with artists and brands involved in design and illustration.

Some of these projects started back at the times when he was designing Lone Costume, a line to which both the English artist Simon Henwood and Japanese graphic designer Nuts worked on.

In 2009 then, Juun.J started a project with illustrator Lorenzo Petrantoni.

In fashion, between 2008 and 2009 two British brands Chris & Tibor and Linda Farrow hired him to design their new collections while Topman involved him in the worldwide project "The Classic White T-shirt" and also Mykita, the eyewear German brand managed to get the designer on board for a collaboration.

Even the sports world is also interested in the designer, so much so that since 2007 the Korean designer has worked more than once with sports brands of the calibre of Reebok, Speedo and Kim Kiroic.

What is more, starting from next January a new project will see Juun.J collaborating with the womenswear brand, Ground-Zero.


Charity projects
This year Juun.J took part in the Six Scents Series Three, a project in aid of charity promoted by perfume brand, Six Scents, in collaboration with Givaudan, the make-up brand famous for having created the first perfume in history - "Shocking" by Elsa Schiapparelli in 1937 - and aimed at raising funds for the protection of nature and the environment at large thanks to charity organization Pro Natura.


His creations are
A mix of different styles and genres - punk, country, rock and classic - all layered together in one piece.

Juun J combines, on different levels, casual and chic. The result is a juxtaposition of rigid structures and soft shapes, sharp cuts and more loose draping. The whole product is often monochromatic and is characterized by a unisex approach to fashion


His style
"Street tailoring", a sort of sartorial constructivism reduced to the lowest terms (although every creation shows great attention to details) which all together exudes freshness and tidiness.


Leit motif
Each one of his collections is characterized by clear military references : straps and laces, hoods and reinforced shoulders, paratrooper trenches and cloaks and big pockets; all inspired to the period he spent his military service in South Korea where it is compulsory.


Method
"I start off by following an idea characterized by a specific mood - he says. The design itself comes at a later stage. The most important element is that all drawings must belong together, they must have something in common and show a leit motif".


A bit retrò, a bit futuristic, Juun.J moves swiftly along his personal time-line creating outfits that are both wearable and innovative. While remaining always loyal to tailoring, he enriches every season's collection with ad-hoc and yet interchangeable details.


Inspiration
Outlining a specific filed is rather limited since his collections draw from the most varied sources of inspiration: from punk to gothic elements to end with a bohemian atmosphere, all combined seamlessly.

It is very likely that cinema ranks high among his influences: theer are indeed quite evident comparisons with the movies of David Lynch and Ridley Scott, but also Michael Curtiz, Sergio Leone and Anthony Minghella. Each and every collection echoes a movie, a place or a time in history.


Advice
Not recommended to those who are very jealous of their clothes. Thanks to Juun.J's unisex approach of his clothes and the easiness in mix-matching them, women will be very likely to "steal" their boyfriend's garments from his wardrobe.


Favorite designers
Helmut Lang and Karl Lagerfeld.


Lives
Between Seoul and Paris.


Something about him
Dark hair combed with almost geometric care, a neat look and black-framed glasses through which he analyzes the world with his wit and curious eyes. Friendly and open, at work he is painstakingly precise and very focused.
Fabiana Gilardi

Published:
01/04/2011