Issey Miyake died this week. Born in Hiroshima in 1938, he was on his way to school when the atom bomb dropped in 1945 (Miyake lost most of his family). The innovative designer studied in Tokyo and went on to the Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture in Paris. After a few years training in exclusive, Parisian couture studios, he rejected elitist fashion; preferring instead to create ‘an easy style, like that of jeans and a T-shirt, but one that could be worn in a wider milieu, regardless of age or profession.’

From the 1970s onwards Miyake’s catwalk shows embraced diversity, his collections were shown on models of all ethnicities and ages, including, in 1985, a group of octagenarians. ‘In the field of clothing design, there is a tendency to look up to the young,’ Miyake said, ‘What is totally being ignored is that clothing is for everyone… I feel that it is our responsibility to design for everyone, and for all generations.’

And, Pleats Please – the concertina-like, bouncy fabric developed by Miyake and launched in 1993 – definitely appeals to creative women of all ages. For me, it will always have strong associations with my fashion editor days in the 1990s (think The Devil Wears Pleats), but I’ve noticed a recent resurgence. From Gen Z to Joni Mitchell, Pleats are universally pleasing. According to the Wall Street Journal searches for second-hand Pleats Please on the resale site the RealReal were up over 300% in the first quarter of this year.

‘When I make something, it’s only half finished,” Miyake said. ‘When people use it – for years and years – then it is finished.’

Miyake accomplished his mission.

These photos by Lucy Fitter are from Graduate Fashion Week, 2017. The women featured are university lecturers and practitioners. Issey Miyake quotes are from Vogue.