The KENZO Spring-Summer 2025 Women’s and Men’s Collection, is a representation of the multicultural brand. It reinforces and refines the over years interwoven cultural history between the Japanese heritage of Kenzo and the brand’s Parisian home. 

Throughout this time, artistic director Nigo has developed a language at the Maison. One of the newly developed words is KENZOLOGY. The word describes the study of an evolutionary wardrobe cultivated from the bridge-building perspective of a Japanese designer in Paris.

The location selected for the presentation of the collection is one, dear to the heart of the Artistic Director. Staged on the golden soil of the Palais-Royal, it is a natural fluorescence of the cross-pollination found at the core of KENZO: a stylistic ecosystem nurtured by Nigo’s creative exchange with the archives of Kenzo Takada, the dress codes of their shared Japanese heritage, and the Parisian spirit of the Maison. Cultured by time, the expression unfolds in silhouettes, constructions and techniques that become entirely their own, rendered in the vibrant colors of origami paper across re-imagined adaptations of archival motifs. 

The Japanese graphic artist Verdy – a long-time friend of Nigo – was invited for his second creative exchange with KENZO, applying his animated signature to the Maison’s iconography. The show’s soundtrack chosen was produced by WhoJiggi with additional co-production by Ero, Jaystolaa and Sekai. 

The emblematic KENZO graphics created by Verdy are brought to life with heightened sa- voir-faire as tapestry jacquard on jackets, line embroidery on denim workwear, chain-stitch on varsity jackets, and in sequins and bead motifs on workwear. KENZO Peonies are in-terpreted in jacquards, heat-imprinted nylon cloqué in coats, laser-burning on overdyed denim, and trippy warp prints on nylon. KENZO Jungle Flowers appear as prints on mesh, crinkled polyester, fluid viscose and cotton linen. The KENZO Paris Jungle scene is realized in superfine loop-back embroidery on crêpe wool dresses and in intarsia knitwear. The KENZO Chiku-rin Camo comes to life as prints on satin workwear, technical nylon outerwear and linen denim as well as tailoring jacquards and in tonal form on kimono-inspired workwear. The KENZO Weave materializes in tailoring wool jacquards, bleached denim and prints on nylon. Fishing garments are adorned with hand-netting while hand-crocheted vests and hoodies are festooned with chunky floral glass hand-beading. Leather and suede appear faded as if blanched by the sun. 

A vivid KENZO Peonies pattern reimagines an archive print of Kenzo Takada’s favorite flower in faded fluo colorways alongside a delicate KENZO Jungle Flower motif. Inspired by traditional ink-wash paintings from the archive, a KENZO Paris Jungle landscape pictures the French capital overtaken by nature, with the Eiffel Tower surrounded by dragonflies and tigers. A KENZO Chiku-rin Camo is created in the image of Japanese bamboo forests in purple, green and lime nuances. The KENZO Weave pattern informed by Hikeshi baten fireman’s jackets evolves in tonal grey and blue. Dragonflies – an ancient Japanese symbol of the refusal to retreat in the face of adversity – appear throughout the collection. Portrayed through the spirited lens of the Japanese graphic artist Verdy, the emblems of KENZO – the tiger, the elephant, the boke – feature in ready-to-wear and bags. 

The women’s silhouette cuts a relaxed line in garments sophisticated in construction but effortless in practice. Reinvigorating archival ideas, draped scarf dresses with fringing are interpreted in casual fabrications alongside contrast-color wrap dresses, skirts and tops adapted from the obi, and over-dimensional skirts nipped at the waist. Inspired in cut by hanjuban – kimono undergarments – denim increases in sensuality, while outerwear imbued with kimono sleeves exudes an elegance likewise expressed in elongated crocheted evening dresses. Menswear approaches everyday archetypal garments with an East-West sensibility in sporty outerwear infused with oriental lines, relaxed four-button tailoring, silhouettes derived from the fisherman’s wardrobe, and baggy satin trousers informed by the tobi-shoku worn by Japanese scaffolders.