I perceive function and beauty as opposing forces.
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My name is Manamu, and I am the designer behind RYAW.
The first time I created garments under the name RYAW was in 2014.
In the beginning, the label mainly focused on translating graphic design into clothing through printing techniques. Over time, my desire shifted from simply placing visuals onto garments to exploring clothing as a medium capable of carrying ideas, emotions, and questions about identity.
Recently, I’ve been deeply inspired by the spiritual essence and cultural archetypes found in Japan. Rather than referencing something external or trendy, I am more interested in how the Japanese psyche, its ambiguity, restraint, and reverence for imperfection can inform the way garments behave and communicate.
Unreal — Boundary — Curiosity
I am currently working on the 26AW collection.
This season represents a turning point for the brand, an attempt to rediscover the emotions and intentions that had become obscured as RYAW continued to grow. Through this process, I found a clearer sense of what the brand should be.
Some items juxtapose Japanese cultural sensibilities with the current state of our craft, allowing clothing to function as both reflection and commentary.
I am focused on expanding my own perspective. Clothing will continue to serve as a vessel for our thoughts and impulses, but I want to integrate cultural layers more consciously so that garments not only exist as objects, but as experiences shaped by context, history, and intention.
I perceive function and beauty as opposing forces.
Function enriches the physical aspects of daily life, while beauty nurtures the emotional and spiritual realm. Function reveals its purpose only when it is fully executed, whereas beauty exists in a broader, more subjective space, its significance shifts from person to person.
For us, function strives toward perfection, while beauty is the presence that accepts and dignifies imperfection.
They externalize what lies within. Materials and textures become unconscious extensions of inner feelings, they manifest the emotional layer of the garment before words can.
