For over 15 years, Y-3 has been transforming the luxury sportswear landscape. Y-3 combines Yohji Yamamoto’s minimalist and sophisticated style with Adidas’ technological innovation and heritage, creating apparel and sneakers that defy convention and explore the future, and forging a perfect combination of functionality and high fashion.
Yohji Yamamoto, known for his radical and unorthodox designs, has been pushing the boundaries of fashion since the 1980s. Meanwhile, Adidas has consistently been at the forefront of sportswear technology and design. The story of Y-3 began in 2002 when Yamamoto and Adidas joined forces to merge sport and fashion, a trend that now permeates contemporary culture. This partnership unites Yamamoto’s artistic prowess with Adidas’ performance and innovation expertise, culminating in a distinctive line of apparel, footwear, and accessories that blends the best of both worlds.
From the outset, Y-3 has been characterized by its minimalist aesthetic, cutting-edge materials, and urban streetwear allure inspired by Japanese culture and the Bauhaus art movement. With an emphasis on sleek design, comfort, and performance, the collection aims to cater to the dynamic lifestyle of the modern consumer who seeks both functionality and style.
Beyond sneakers, Y-3 offers an extensive range of ready-to-wear garments that meld sportswear’s functionality and comfort with fashion’s elegance and artistry. From jackets and pants to T-shirts, dresses, and skirts, Y-3’s signature elements include asymmetrical silhouettes, oversized cuts, technical fabrics, graphic details, and a refined color palette. The collection accommodates various needs and occasions, spanning casual streetwear to polished athleisure.
The use of premium materials, such as leather, silk, and cashmere, sets this collaboration apart. Integrating these luxurious fabrics with Adidas’ sportswear design expertise yields pieces that exude both functionality and opulence. Yohji Yamamoto’s unmistakable style shines through each collection with innovative design elements, such as asymmetry, draping, and layering. By masterfully blending diverse fabrics and textures, Yamamoto’s designs elevate sportswear to high fashion, crafting pieces fit for both the track and the runway.
In addition to the Y-3 collections, Adidas and Yohji Yamamoto have also collaborated on a range of limited edition sneakers. These sneakers combine Adidas’ technical expertise with Yohji Yamamoto’s avant-garde design, resulting in some of the most sought-after sneakers in the fashion world.
Whether it’s unconventional cuts or innovative materials, Y-3 continues to reinvent itself each season, drawing inspiration from the legacies of Adidas and Yohji Yamamoto to propose a bold design language. The collection features timeless Adidas designs revamped from Yohji Yamamoto’s avant-garde perspective.
Y-3’s “Spring/Summer 2023” collection is divided into two chapters:
In Chapter 1 of the “Spring/Summer 2023” collection introduces the concept of “Artisanal Codes of Sport”, exploring the fusion of craftsmanship and sports-inspired designs. This bold and innovative line features clothing, footwear, and accessories that challenge conventional elegance, building upon a legacy of audacious dynamism. The collection draws from visual elements typical of team sports, presenting a multifaceted and creative design vision.
The range includes letterman jackets, sports pants, cargo pants, shirts, cardigans, and caps. The Y-3 logo, inspired by Adidas’ athletic heritage, showcases brushstrokes that lend a dynamic, handmade feel. This collection revisits its roots through refined, expertly crafted silhouettes that merge Adidas’ sportswear history with Yohji Yamamoto’s avant-garde touch.
Footwear focuses on silhouettes that re-envision iconic Adidas styles with Y-3’s unyielding, rebellious spirit. The Y-3 SUPERSTAR, Y-3 HICHO, Y-3 MARATHON TR, and Y-3 GAZELLE honor the Japanese Sachiko tradition through pronounced tonal stitching and daring designs with freely hanging threads. The Y-3 RIVALRY and futuristic Y-3 RUNNER 4D HALO also feature prominently in this collection.
Y-3 Chapter 2 of the “Spring/Summer 2023” collection, signifies a new era in the partnership between Adidas and Yohji Yamamoto. This collection boldly explores “effortless technical apparel,” embodying a distinctively futuristic Y-3 vision. It deconstructs and reimagines the Y-3 archetype while preserving the lineage of defiant dynamism from Chapter 1. The line features a range of apparel, footwear, and accessories that have been boldly reinvented with high-performance elements and silhouettes.
Drawing from Yohji Yamamoto’s practical workwear legacy, the collection emphasizes two core aspects of the Y-3 archive: outdoor design and functional detailing. Effortless technical styling is thoughtfully integrated into garments and accessories with adjustable features like fabric laces, snap buttons, straps, and asymmetrical cuts. This collection sheds new light on Yohji Yamamoto’s avant-garde aesthetics.
Lastly, the Y-3 Terrex SWIFT R3 GTX stands out as a key model in both high-cut and low-cut versions. Designed for outdoor enthusiasts, its dynamic shape combines neoprene, textile, and rubber materials, and boasts a waterproof GORE-TEX® membrane finish.
The fusion of Adidas and Yohji Yamamoto marries the best of both worlds, incorporating Adidas’ innovative sports technology with Yamamoto’s avant-garde vision. The Adidas and Yohji Yamamoto collaboration has been going strong for over two decades, and it shows no signs of slowing down. Each new Y-3 collection brings new innovations and design elements, showcasing the perfect fusion of sportswear and high fashion.
The collaboration between Adidas and Yohji Yamamoto signifies a paradigm shift in the world of sportswear, demonstrating that athletic apparel can be both functional and fashionable. As the line between sports and fashion continues to blur, we can anticipate even more exciting collaborations that will push the boundaries of design and innovation. For now, the Adidas x Yohji Yamamoto collection stands as a testament to the power of creative partnerships, capturing the attention of the fashion world and redefining sportswear as we know it.
