Comme des Garçons has never been about safe fashion. Rei Kawakubo built a legacy not by pleasing the crowd, but by pushing it to squirm, question, even recoil. Her collections often land in that uneasy space between fashion and critique, forcing audiences to confront their own perceptions of beauty, taste, and meaning. Controversy isn’t a byproduct—it’s a deliberate choice, a tool sharpened to slice through conformity.

The 1997 ‘Lumps and Bumps’ Collection

Few collections have polarized the fashion world quite like “Body Meets Dress, Dress Meets Body.” Nicknamed “Lumps and Bumps,” it presented bulbous, padded distortions under stretch fabrics. Models appeared misshapen, alien, even grotesque. Critics were divided: was this a mockery of traditional beauty  or a radical reclamation of the human form? Either way, the designs challenged the very architecture of clothing, making the body itself a canvas for deformation and possibility.

Blackface Mannequins, 2018

In one of Comme’s most criticized moments, the brand unveiled black-painted mannequins with cornrow wigs. The backlash was immediate and fierce. Many saw it as a disturbing Comme Des Garcons use of racist tropes, while the brand insisted it was an artistic choice meant to reflect diversity. The incident ignited a larger debate about who gets to borrow from which cultures, and whether artistic intent can ever excuse cultural blindness.

The “Hair-Wig” Shoes

When Comme sent shoes down the runway covered in long, flowing hair, the reaction was equal parts fascination and repulsion. Some called them surreal sculptures, others dismissed them as gimmickry. They were undeniably unsettling, blurring the line between human and object. Kawakubo used them to provoke discomfort around identity, femininity, and adornment—questions that linger far beyond the runway.

The 2015 “Blood and Bandages” Show

In a hauntingly visceral show, models walked in garments resembling blood-soaked bandages and shredded fabrics. The imagery drew uncomfortable parallels to war, wounds, and suffering. Critics debated whether the collection exploited trauma or gave voice to it. The unsettling visuals forced the fashion world to reckon with violence and fragility in a space usually reserved for glamour and aspiration.

Comme’s Use of Religious Imagery

Sacred symbols have repeatedly found their way into Comme’s collections. Crosses, shrouds, and vestment-inspired garments appeared not as reverence but reinterpretation. While some praised the audacity, others condemned the brand for trivializing belief systems. Kawakubo treats religion as another language to remix, sparking debate on where inspiration ends and sacrilege begins.

Rei Kawakubo’s Unapologetic Philosophy

At the center of all controversy stands Kawakubo herself, unyielding and unrepentant. She has never apologized for the discomfort her designs create. For her, fashion isn’t about clothes—it’s about ideas. Each scandal, each uproar, is part of her lifelong experiment to break boundaries. The controversy surrounding Comme des Garçons isn’t accidental; it’s the pulse that keeps the brand alive, daring us to rethink what fashion can mean.