It was in the early 1990s that many of these brands emerged as activation elements in the Harajuku neighborhood. Based on an urban legend that says that a new product must modify at least 40% of a previous design, Nishiyama created FPAR (Forty Percents Against Rights), a brand that used the bootleg concept to develop and communicate new strategies. Foreign fanzines and magazines, metro cards and flyers reconverted into collages, garments with a DIY aesthetic, patterns inherited from hip hop and urban guerrilla that have evolved towards sustainability and recycling.
Tetsu Nishiyama, the double shot of WTAPS
To know the origins of Tetsu Nishiyama is to look for the birth of Japanese streetwear, a second wave of great design names among which are Keizo Shimizu (Needles), Shinsuke Takizawa (NBHD), Hiroshi Fujiwara and Nigo.
In 1996 Tetsu Nishiyama created WTAPS, where the lifestyle gave way to the product. A new brand in which references to military designs and terms were the basis for building stories about high performance materials and utility-focused designs. The brand name, WTAPS, refers to a type of double shot in which the second bullet enters the same place as the first had penetrated. And yes, the first bullet was FPAR.
Originally, WTAPS was built under the motto "Placing things were they should be", as an attempt to abandon design in search of functionality without artifice, but in the quarter century since its creation, it has evolved to include new concepts. Beyond the classic references to military patterns, in WTAPS you can find part of the Japanese craftsmanship and Taoism.
Through the reborn FPAR, but also WTAPS and his latest brand, Descendant, Tetsu Nishiyama has tried to keep his block of ideas close to Tokyo, but has also managed to grow through collaborations with adidas, Vans, Nike, Supreme and Stüssy. Without relying on fashions or trends, adjusting to origins that manage to evolve without losing the essence.