Inside the autobiographical and trans-cultural design of NAMESAKE
Michael B. Hsieh, co-founder of the family-owned brand, tells it all
Fashion
May 1st, 2022
May 1st, 2022
«Coach Carter is definitely influential for me», says Michael B. Hsieh, executive director and co-founder of the NAMESAKE brand along with his two brothers. «It taught me some important lessons in life. Nothing in the world is gifted, the only way to receive it is to fight for it». Coach Carter is the film that inspired the latest editorial that the brand has dedicated to its SS22 collection - a collection that, like all the others that preceded it, brings with it a peculiar mix of inspirations that have a triple origin: in Japanese avant-garde fashion, in the Taiwanese agricultural tradition that is the country of origin of the three brothers and their father, and finally in the world of basketball. «Basketball was actually our first love. […] Me and my brothers played basketball 24/7. Beside going to school, the only memory I remembered when I was young was playing basketball with them on the street». The individual stories of the three Hsieh brothers and their father, who provided them with the spark of inspiration for the birth of NAMESAKE, unfold across half the world, from Taipei to Tokyo high schools to Los Angeles and Seattle - this is the theater of the brand's story. «Each collection is based on our experiences living between these cities. […] Our highschool time in Tokyo definitely influenced our love for avant garde silhouettes […]. Our experience living in Los Angeles and Seattle definitely taught us to have a relaxed style, which translates into our slouchy silhouette».
If this mix of inspirations seems eclectic (and it is), it's because the brand's conformation and aesthetic are deeply rooted in the Hsieh family's history. It all starts with the father of the three brothers, who was passionate about art and fashion but for whom it was impossible, at the time, to pursue his dreams of becoming an interior designer. It was the post-World War II era, and the economic stability promised by a career in agriculture (one of the main industries of Taiwan's economy along with fishing) was preferable to any dream - but the father of the three brothers not only did not give up on that dream, continuing to read and collect art, fashion and design magazines, but, many years later, passed it on to his sons. In return, Michael, Richard and Steve, after deciding to found NAMESAKE, have fulfilled their father's dreams, who today actively participates in the life of the brand, even appearing in campaigns and editorials. When I ask Michael about the brand's approach to craftsmanship and construction, the conversation goes back to his father again: «Craftsmanship is super important to us because of our father. Our father inspired us to devote our life to fashion and art. He is super detail-oriented and cares about things that normal people wouldn’t […]. We want our craftsmanship to be deep with stories and to represent our life journey».
The question about craftsmanship came from a consideration of the style and aesthetics pursued by the brand, which combines elements derived from the world of basketball with raw textured fabrics, details inspired by the world of agriculture and fishing in which their father lived for decades and a decidedly avant-garde sensibility that, once again, it was their father who inspired the three brothers when they discovered Dover Street Market in Tokyo. «We desire to bring out the agriculture and industrial feel that we grew up in through hand-crafted executions», explains Michael. «For knitwear, recycled Japanese postman bags are given new life. They are deconstructed and recreated as paper yarn taping used on all hems». The question about craftsmanship came from a consideration of the style and aesthetics pursued by the brand, which combines elements derived from the world of basketball with raw textured fabrics, details inspired by the world of agriculture and fishing in which their father lived for decades and a decidedly avant-garde sensibility that, once again, it was their father who inspired the three brothers when they discovered Dover Street Market in Tokyo. Another novelty is « a wool-like fabric composed of pineapple yarn, tercel and recycled poly», which sits alongside paper-based fabrics and French Terry fabrics that mimic the texture of leather.
Given the abundance of these and other techniques, it's surprising that the Hsieh brothers are practically self-taught. But this element, like everything else, ties in with the three brothers' personal history of jumping from one country to another. «We always thought we were outsiders - from how we grew up to the current fashion industry we are in. Taipei is not known as a fashion capital and we three brothers did not go to fashion school, but we always had the dreams of being creators […]. You don’t necessarily need to study something to be what you want». But even more important is their mission, which combines practice and theory together: «We constantly aim to improve ourselves and uplift the culture we believe in». Which not only, creatively speaking, leads the brothers to look to their own memories for the inspiration for a silhouette, a texture, a garment; but also informs the material side of the items, as a kind of unifying theme: «Basketball aesthetics allows us to construct the silhouette and shape each season […]. But we give it a contemporary update by using agrarian and fishing gear lenses to select out our fabrics. To bring out our agricultural and fishing background, we will select fabrics that look both like a basketball net or fish net».
