By Daniel Jones
When it comes to underground accessories, Tokyo-based Maiko Asami is one of Japan’s brightest lights… though perhaps I should say “darkest” instead. Under the name Black Triangle Design, 30 year-old Asami (who’s also ½ of Tokyo’s premiere dark queer party SODOM) has been producing a beautiful line of leather and metallic jewelery for the past three years that echoes the punk ideology of her youth while reverberating her love for goth-tinged high fashion. Her new collection is called “Anlage”, a word that in this context means, “primordial foundation”. It’s an apt name, as the line is both heavier and more impressive then ever before. I spoke to Asami recently over Skype about her origins and inspirations.
How did you get into design?
I never thought “I want to be a fashion designer” but it was somehow very natural for me. Since childhood, I’ve always made and customised what I wear because the clothes that my parents gave to me were much too “girly” for me. I always cut off the frills and ribbons, and threw away all the clothes with pink colours and floral prints. I would also customise my brother’s old clothes for myself.
When I was a teenager, I discovered punk rock and other, more cutting-edge forms of underground music. These sounds inspired a fusion of inspiration with my D.I.Y., feminist, gender queer spirit. From age 15 to 18, I was an illustrator in Tokyo’s underground punk scene. I designed fliers, visuals and logos for bands and some T-shirts for punk shops. I was in that scene for a long time, and I liked many of the bands associated with it. But it was too straight and macho for me; there was no queerness in it at all. So I ventured into new areas.
What happened then?
I became the art director of Tokyo’s International Lesbian & Gay Film Festival. After that, the chief editor and I started our own first Japanese international lesbian and queer culture webzine, called TokyoWrestling.com. The webzine was focused on tough, creative women and the art, culture, lifestyles of cutting-edge lesbians all over the world. I became really inspired from doing interviews with artists like MEN, Telepathe, CSS etc. and doing articles about the underground queer scenes in different countries.
What led to the creation of Black Triangle Design?
I was always trying to create my own style by mixing my music background, queer identity, and a high-fashion element. Three years ago, I made a studded black leather necklace in the shape of a triangle. I knew the black triangle was a symbol of gays and feminists in the Nazi Regime, and it’s also an occult symbol in modern dark music movements like witch house. The metal studs and black leather, on the other hand, expressed my goth-punk background. Many of my friends wanted to get that necklace. I had just quit my job and I wanted to start a new career, so I began producing and selling it. It sold out very quickly, and I soon got other stockists. The name doesn’t mean I‘ll continue to make triangle-shaped things forever, or even queer things. But that symbol gave me a chance to start a new career, and I feel lucky for that.
How has the aesthetic changed since that first necklace?
The biggest change is that product should be designed not only for myself, of course. Each piece is made with an element of my own style, but they can be mixed with various styles, interpreted freely.
What materials do you use in the construction of the pieces?
Leather from cows, deers and sharks, brass, hemp, and stone. I love to mix natural, organic materials and artificial and industrial materials, and I love to mix modern design and ancient design with high fashion and street fashion as well.
Which labels inspire you?
I’m always inspired by a wide range of fashion labels, from cheap fast fashion to high-end brands. I’m also inspired by snapshots from underground parties.
What about music?
Coming from the underground, music is a very natural inspiration for me and just a habit of my life. When I started my brand, I was obsessed with modern dark music like witch house. Recently I’ve been inspired by music that mixes metallic beats with emotional voices — dark techno, powernoise, dubstep-y bass and new industrial music. Maybe that’s one reason why I like to mix organic and artificial. I can feel realness from chaotic diversity. My friend and I also do a Neo Dark Age queer dance party called “SODOM”. We love to have a space where we can listen to our favorite new dark music and where attendees wear high-end dark fashion. I think music is always reflecting the voices from youth culture and subculture that teachers and textbooks will never teach.