Anrealage show finale at Paris Fashion Week.
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The clue lay in the invitation for the Anrealage runway show at Paris Fashion Week. Delivered alongside the ticket was a small red plastic heart. Activated via a button, it vibrated softly accompanied by the sound of a gently pulsing heartbeat.
Likewise the collection. As they walked the runway, the swirls flounces of the garments undulated of their own accord as if they were living creatures. The same was true of furry feline-esque handbags with metronomic ‘tails’ cradled in the arms of the models who absently petted their cargo as they walked.
Behind the motion sensors and kinetic technology embedded in the fabrics was robotics startup Yukai Engineering Inc. which drew inspiration from its robotics product Qoobo—therapeutic robotic cushions with tails which wave gently when caressed. Idea being that they deliver similar wellbeing benefits to petting a real life animal.
The concept recalled the animaltronic LOVOT robots that featured in an installation by Hiroshi Fujiwara’s cult streetwear label FRGMT at Moncler’s Art of Genius show which took place in London a couple of years back. They were originally conceived during the pandemic to mimic human connection for people who were isolating.
A model in the Anrealage show at Paris Fashion Week cradles a furry accessory with metronomic tail.
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The collection’s prints were a partnership with HERALBONY, with bases in Tokyo and at Paris innovation campus Station F. The company empowers artists with disabilities, 18 of whom conceived the artwork printed onto the fabrics by sustainable printer FOREARTH which as per the show notes reduces water usage in textile production to near zero by streamlining traditional pre- and post-treatment processes.
HERALBONY received an innovation award in 2024 for EMployee Experience, Diversity an Inclusion and a Gold Lion, Glass, The Lion for Change at thhe 2025 Cannes Lions International Festival for Creativity.
Anrealage’s Kunihiko Morinaga has long been a pioneer in fabric innovation and last year he teamed up with Kuchofuku, a Japanese pioneer in air-conditioned, inflatable garments to create pieces that cool the wearer via embedded fans.
The show was soundtracked by a heartbeat created with Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter who layered its rhythm against the sounds made by the artists as they produced the prints.
According to Anrealage’s Morinaga, it marked a statement on what it means to be human in a world increasingly dominated by artificial intelligence or AI.
A look at the Anrealage show at Paris Fashion Week.
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Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stephaniehirschmiller/2025/10/03/the-anrealage-show-at-pfw-paired-robotics-with-human-heartbeats/
