404 STUDIO

SS 27 404 Studio collection draws inspiration from Paprika (2006), the animated film by Satoshi Kon, exploring the porous boundary between dreams and reality as a metaphor for personal and creative evolution. In the film, the dream world unfolds in hyper-saturated, almost overwhelming colours like an endless, fluid landscape shaped by desire, memory, and subconscious impulses, while reality appears restrained, muted, and controlled. This visual and psychological contrast becomes a central language for the collection.

At its core, the project reflects on the duality between who we are and who we once ima- gined we could be. The character of Paprika embodies a liberated woman, an instinctive alter ego who is fearless, intuitive, and free from constraints, while her counterpart represents structure, responsibility, and self-control. This tension mirrors the journey of growing up: the gradual negotiation between aspiration and acceptance, between the vivid intensity of youth and the more subdued clarity of adulthood.

The collection also draws from the film’s deeper connection to psychoanalysis, particularly the idea of the subconscious as a space where fragmented identities, desires, and fears coexist. Dreams are not treated as escapism, but as an essential layer of truth: one that reveals what is often suppressed in waking life. This duality becomes a narrative tool to reflect on the designer’s own relationship with fashion.

Rooted in a personal story, the collection traces a trajectory that begins with instinct and naivety like a child discovering fashion as a pure form of expression and evolves into a more complex, and at times conflicted, relationship with the industry.

Over time, the spontaneity of creation can give way to structure, expectation, and resilience, shaping a more stoic perspective. This body of work emerges as an attempt to reconcile these phases: to reconnect with the emotional intensity and freedom that first defined that creative impulse, while acknowledging the realities that have since shaped it.

Visually, this translates into a dialogue between two worlds. Saturated, dreamlike palettes as vivid reds, electric blues, and artificial greens which interact with washed-out, almost desaturated tones.

Ultimately, the collection is not about choosing between dream and reality, but about allowing both to coexist. It is a reflection on growth, on disillusionment, and on the possibility of rediscovering meaning within one’s own path. Through this lens, fashion returns to its origin point, not just as a dis- cipline or industry, but as a deeply personal language of expression.