Hana Tajima on her latest UNIQLO collab and adapting to the pandemic

What's your inspiration behind your latest Spring/Summer 2021 collection?

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"The idea behind this season was ‘changing lifestyles’. So much of our lives have taken place in smaller confines this past year. And even before that, there has been a shift towards a more integrated lifestyle, a feeling that all the boundaries between different aspects of our life are blurring. We can work remotely, or exercise at home. While there are a lot of practical benefits to that way of life, it’s challenging to keep a sense of separation that allows you to transition easily.
Clothing can be a mental armour, the act of dressing can help us to embody the role we’re about to take on. I wanted to design clothing that was versatile enough to take us through one part of the day to the next. That gave comfort and a way to connect to our bodies so that we can exist more easily in these moments."

What is it like to partner with UNIQLO again for Spring/Summer 2021

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"This collaboration with UNIQLO is deeply gratifying. The team I work with are so dedicated and talented. I’ve been given a lot of trust and freedom to create designs that I feel passionate about. I decided early on in my career that I would only make clothes that meant something to me, and this past year especially it has been such a wonderful way to stay hopeful."

What are some of the notable changes in response to your customers' needs in terms of designs over the years?

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"What we realized is that there was a wider audience for these designs than we’d first anticipated. I’ve always designed trying to speak to a beauty that exists in all women,  but as we brought it to different countries we saw how that beauty could translate between cultures. That has been a wonderful thing to see."

What message would you like to convey to customers with this collection?

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"I want people to feel connected to their bodies, to themselves. These clothes are made to be worn, to belong to people. I think that’s where it intersects with UNIQLO's philosophy of Lifewear. They truly are made to be lived in.
By focusing on comfort, and innovative but simple design, allows each person to define their own style. The more you wear the clothes, you start finding new ways to style them. I was wearing these pieces as we were going through the design process and found that I kept coming back, creating different looks, experimenting."

Which pieces from the collection would you yourself like to wear and why?

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"I’ve been wearing all these pieces so much. I’ve found a lot of comfort and strength in them this past year. The pieces I wear most are the ramie blouse, and the linen/rayon pants. The fabrics are beautiful, and the styles always seem to match my mood. The pants have this slightly androgynous silhouette which lets me play with my feminine and masculine sides in interesting ways. And the ramie blouse, with its diaphanous structure, feels almost sculpted on the body, where you can see the seams and how it’s constructed. It seems to hold sunlight in its fibres, so it surrounds you in a beautiful soft light."

Have people’s relationships with their clothing changed at all due to the current global pandemic?

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"We have seen the cycles of our lives from inside our homes. The rhythm of our day. Of hope and losing it and finding it again. Our edges becoming less clearly defined. Work, socialising, exercise all sitting together in the same space.
I took comfort in the things I wore. Made a collection of pieces that felt soft and easy.  Which took me from one part of my life to another. I dressed to draw strength from different sides of myself."
The Hana Tajima x UNIQLO collection is available at UNIQLO Orchard Central Global Flagship Store, Causeway Point and uniqlo.com. Prices range from $9.90 to $99.90.