maiko takeda
Photo by Mali Wychodil for her. magazine.
Maiko Takeda (born 1986) is an artist and designer whose creations evoke both awe and intrigue. She transforms tangible and mundane materials into surreal and ethereal experiences, for the wearer and the surrounding environment. Maiko has collaborated on various projects with Issey Miyake, Björk, Google Cultural Institute, Nike and the film Hunger Games: Mockingjay2. Her work has been shown at a number of museums, such as Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum and Museum of Modern Art, to name a few. Her work has also been acquired by Metropolitan Museum of Art, Manchester Art Gallery, National Museums Scotland for their permanent collections.
LUCIJA ŠUTEJ: At UAL Central Saint Martins, you initially turned towards Jewellery Design - why this specific branch of design? Have you ever considered studying Sculpture?
MAIKO TAKEDA: I liked the idea of jewelry being some sort of treasure-like mini sculpture for the body. At a certain point, I also considered studying fine art - specifically sculpture, but the thought of - “I am free to make anything"; felt a little too broad. I like making 3-dimensional objects I can hold in my hands, so architecture was too much of a bigger scale. I was only 19, and it was quite an intuitive decision when I chose jewelry design—but it is sometimes good not to overthink stuff, isn't it? I would not have imagined it would lead me on the journey I am on so far.
LŠ: Definitely! During your time at UAL and in your early years - which materials resonated the most with your work and why? Which did you find most challenging?
MT: Mostly metal - including brass, copper, and silver. Metal was the main material I explored and worked with, as the jewelry design BA course thought a lot about learning classical metalsmithing techniques, and the facilities to support jewelry making were also there. Metal-associated processes are often more time-consuming compared to working with softer materials such as paper. It was a new process for me to get used to.
In addition to college, I worked at costume jewelry brand Erickson Beamon and interned at milliners Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy. All these experiences introduced me to many new materials and techniques, which were sometimes overwhelming yet exciting to discover.
Photos of prototypes and research courtesy of the designer.
LŠ: Were there specific techniques you learned that you transferred to millinery?
MT: One of my strengths is my experience in jewelry, millinery, and handbag design, which all require different skill sets and materials. I enjoy combining these design specialisms and incorporating various elements in my work. For example, the Atmospheric Reentry collection was created using a common jewelry-making technique: each spiky unit was assembled together with small metal jump rings using pairs of pliers. As a result, it added jewelry-like preciousness to the finished headpieces while being constructed entirely free of sewing or gluing.
Photo by Mali Wychodil for her. magazine.
Photo by Mali Wychodil for her. magazine.
Photo by Mali Wychodil for her. magazine.
LŠ: In our previous conversation, you mentioned that working for Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy shaped your interest in hat design. How exactly?
MT: From Stephen Jones, I learned how playfulness in design and seriousness in execution could coexist and enhance each other in headwear. His processes often used unusual combinations of materials and techniques, which was really fun and inspiring to experience.
Also, in the atelier, I met milliner Noel Stewart, who later became my tutor and mentor at the Royal College of Art. He is an amazing person and taught me so much. At Philip Treacy, it was incredible to witness how Mr.Treacy could transform any material into any shape with perfection. Everything in his atelier had sculptural beauty - even the wooden hat blocks lined up on his shelves were gorgeous to observe.
LŠ: Who do you consider your mentors, and what advice resonated the most with you?
MT: Issey Miyake is one of the people who had a significant impact and was important for my education. It was a real privilege for me to witness what the creative journey of such a visionary looked like. One of the things that struck me very much was how he always stayed free and fearless in his creative processes. Capsule Collection was an unforgettable experience that we worked on a few years ago. It was an unusual project as it was not meant for a commercial production, but started rather as research and ended up as an art project. In the frames of it, digging deep together into the inspiration - Jomon period, Mr. Miyake was fascinated by at that time, he really challenged us to create something completely free of conventional rules and ideas of how clothing and accessories are supposed to be made.
We were a team of skilled professionals, but we were rewinding everything we knew about fashion design and working on the collection through children's eyes again. While having a deep understanding of craftsmanship and appreciation for modern technologies, Mr. Miyake showed us to enjoy and stay bold, which I continue to remind myself to this day.
LŠ: You also said that hats are freedom— why?
MT: Hats are not as limited by practicality or functionality as some of the other fashion items - such as shoes, which carry more responsibility in terms of safety and wearability. I love that hats can be as sculptural and crazy as they want, as long as they can be worn on the head - there is a lot of space above one's head, and literally, the sky's the limit! I am fascinated that headwear can be incredibly playful while being cool - for example Schiaparelli's famous Shoe Hat is a shoe on the head but is a serious hat. If it were worn on the other part of the body, it could look like a costume.
LŠ: Schiaparelli really was a one-of-a-kind designer. You completed your MA in millinery at the Royal College of Art in London, where you started developing your distinct pieces - Atmospheric Reentry. It would be great to hear about how the collection was developed and how you see it expanding in the future.
MT: I initially questioned what it would feel like to wear a cloud on the body. By reacting to the modern era in which digital and physical worlds are intertwined and merged more than ever, I was interested in creating something almost non-existent object, like a hologram, using tactile and “real" materials. I wanted to play with the unexpected contrast between digital and analog in my work.
With this vague goal in mind, I started experimenting with various materials, such as plastic, optical fiber, cotton fluff, and so on. Eventually, I started printing gradients of colors on plastic sheets and cutting them into spiky shapes. The plastic I chose had the right hardness - it was stiff enough to hold its shape but soft enough to sway slightly when the wind blows and give an organic movement. I did not want a hellraiser-like, painful feeling in my work. Next, I did tests with the plastic spikes - stitching them on fabrics, connecting them with metal wire, and weaving or knitting them together in textiles. One evening, while I was staying in the studio, a lightbulb moment came. I realized that by incorporating a technique I knew from jewelry - making, each spiky unit could be connected and built into a large surface of the flexible spiky textiles. The result was that when all the spiky units were assembled together, it created an aura-like translucent layer around the body.
Currently, I am developing a new body of work. I want to create spiky surfaces on a bigger scale so that they not only veil human bodies but also envelop our surrounding environment altogether. It would be great to see a house, a tree, or maybe even a whole town covered in spikes and appearing to have souls of their own with their glowing aura.
LŠ: Do you often collaborate on collections?
MT: Since becoming an independent artist/designer in 2020, I have regularly collaborated with Issey Miyake on their collections. I have been based in Milan since 2023 and am excited to explore new opportunities in the new city.
Photo by Ayako Kichikawa.
Photo by Yuen Hsieh, excerpt from fashion film IX (©Royal College of Art, directed by George Tsioutsias).
Photography by Ram Shergill for Drama Magazine.
Photography by Ram Shergill for Drama Magazine.
LŠ: Having worked for Issey Miyake in Tokyo, as their hat designer - it would be great to hear how you see the experience shaping your artistic practice.
MT: After graduating from the Royal College of Art, I returned to Tokyo to start as an accessory designer at Issey Miyake. Their office is minutes away from the home I grew up in, and I felt emotional about joining the company I used to walk past every day as a child.
I worked on hats, bags, and other accessories for the womenswear team. It was a big learning curve for me, and I was surrounded by wonderful colleagues who would allow me space to try things and grow. I worked there for six years, which was a lot of fun! I also realized how I enjoy working as a team through the job. As an independent artist in my studio now, I continue to work on client projects and my artistic practice because I love the feeling of creating something on a big scale with other people.
LŠ: Which designers and artists do you admire - and why?
MT: I love works of female surrealist artists such as Remedios Varo from the early 20th century. As a woman myself, female sensuality and the emotions their works carry, fascinate me.
LŠ: You also mentioned being inspired by different exhibitions - we could look at the collection you are currently working on.
MT: I am working on a new collection inspired by an exhibition titled Unfinished, which I saw in New York several years ago. It showcased art from the Renaissance to the contemporary era that was left unfinished for various reasons. In the work-in-progress brush marks and unfilled blank voids in the canvases, I could feel the unfiltered insecurity and ego, happiness, and excitement of such master artists. It was refreshing and thought-provoking, as we are normally used to seeing perfectly finished works of art in museums.
LŠ: Finally, what advice would you give to young designers?
MT: If I were to give advice to my younger self, I would say, “Expand and deepen your world, both outwards and inwards, as much as possible—go out and meet people, build friendships, travel, and see things. Also learn things that interest you and dig deep" because the friendships, experiences, and knowledge we gain when we are younger are so valuable that they will keep feeding our inspirations and helping us in our careers all the way along the future.