Exploring the customisation and decoration of military uniform following the forced conscription of tribal and indigenous peoples.
Garments look to experiment with the ways in which military uniforms – designed to avoid any individualism – are customised and humanised by indigenous peoples, representing the ongoing thematic dualities and core maharishi values of Military / Pacifist, East / West, and Nature / Technology.
Signature artworks reinterpret Vietnamese Hmong Story Cloths, illustrating Hill Tribes communing with AWOL soldiers. Military patches feature heavily within the collection, with classic tour-style patches reworked in organic cotton.
Seasonal colours draw from Middle-Eastern tribal communities; the deep-red ‘Carmine’ is derived from a pigment produced from insects. Other colours include Coyote Tan – a medium brown repurposed from U.S. Marine fieldwear, reinforcing maharishi’s pacifist military design.
AW20 sees the introduction of DPM: Mamushi – a two colour disruptive pattern inspired by the camouflage commonly worn by South Korean high school students who were receiving military training during the 1970s – 1990s. Taking its name from the venomous viper found in Korea and other areas of East Asia, DPM: Mamushi reinterprets the season’s palette across Woodland, Night, Carmine and Mono colourways – the latter serving as a minimalist variant that stays true to the original Korean camouflage.
