Inside the Fortezza da Basso, JiyongKim has installed a meditation on time. The South Korean designer’s exhibition at Pitti Uomo 110 presents garments that have been deliberately exposed to the elements — sun-bleached, rain-marked, wind-worn — in a process he describes as collaboration with nature rather than control over it.
The showcase, his most ambitious to date and his first outside Seoul, marks a significant moment for the slow-fashion movement at an event traditionally associated with commerce and immediate sell-through. JiyongKim’s pieces invite the buyer to consider a different relationship with clothing: one of patience, observation, and acceptance of imperfection.
Pitti Uomo has a history of spotlighting designers who push conceptual boundaries. Past guest designers have included Simone Rocha, Grace Wales Bonner, and Craig Green. JiyongKim’s selection signals that the trade fair sees value in fashion as a contemplative practice, not just a commercial one.
Each garment in the exhibition carries its own environmental diary. Fabrics are treated with natural dyes sourced from local plants, then left outdoors for weeks. The resulting patterns are unpredictable — a streak of faded indigo here, a water ring there — making each piece genuinely one-of-a-kind.
