- February 4, 2007
- Profiles
Left of Center
How the Brooklyn collective Saenai cuts against the grain. By Gabriel Bell

"It's something usually referred to in the Japanese language as 'different' or 'out of the ordinary,'" says Jay Escobara, attempting to translate the name of his Brooklyn-based design collective, Saenai. "It could even have a strongly negative meaning, like 'fucked up.'"
You may not need to be a linguist to find these connotations all over Saenai's cunningly out of step designs, but you will have to pay attention. Seemingly conventional at first brush, a closer look reveals that every one of the slightly grungy street looks created by longtime partners and friends Escobara, Mark Gabriel, and Nobu Wantanabe is just a little off, a little "fucked up."
Follow the pleat along the front of what seems to be a plaid shirt, and you'll find that the row of buttons lines the side to an unexpected hood. Admire a loosely constructed vest from their most recent summer collection long enough, and you'll discover it's actually a shirt. From their unconventional stitching and blocking to the group's beautifully off-kilter take on the gray and black banded shirt currently dominating our sidewalks, Saenai's clothes for men and women offer welcome distractions and knowing winks for those who keep their eyes open.

Says Gabriel of the trio's initial intentions when they banded together over a decade ago, "We wanted to bring in a breath of fresh air into art and fashion—something for people to take in and enjoy in any way." Intended as more of a conceptual art project than a market-ready clothing line, Saenai's stable of troupes on familiar forms is more than just a parade of a few well-planned "gotchas" and sleeveless Ts.
"Our initial idea was to transgress the idea of modern design and modern art," says Escobara. "Art is a little bit more global and a little bit easier to spread around than fashion. Some people just totally consider themselves non-stylish. But with art, it's a little more acceptable and accessible."
All this may seem a touch heady, considering that Saenai's goods appear positively utilitarian compared to the gallery-ready designs of, say, Chalayan. Stepping out of the world of such salon favorites, however, and onto the street, one can quickly see how Saenai's tiny cuts against the grain provide quick moments of humor and wonder. As the world becomes ever more fashionable and style is now the rule rather than the exception, Saenai's deconstructed coats, reconsidered shirts, and cross-pollinated forms demand double-takes—the highest sidewalk compliment.

"We're not reinventing the world, by any means," says Escobara. Indeed, Saenai's extremely wearable designs probably won't blow your wardrobe apart. If you're lucky, though, they might just fuck it up a little.
Saenai is available in New York at Still Life, 77 Orchard Street, 212-575-9704; in Los Angeles at Scout, 7920 West 3rd Street, 323-658-8684. For more information, go to www.saenai.com
How the Brooklyn collective Saenai cuts against the grain.
You need Flash 8 or higher to view Refinery 29
- Huffington Post Style
- Coolhunting
- Racked
- MySpace Fashion
- Cafe Mode
- V Magazine
- Portfolio/Fashion Inc
- Chictopia
- Style Will Save Us
- We Are the Market
- Stylelist
- Garance Dore
- Sartorialist
- Street Peeper
- Fashion Trend Digest
- Stylesightings
- This is Glamorous
- Mode et Utopie
- Fashion Minute
- Queerty
- No Good For Me
- Seamsters
- Cool Chiq
- Second City Style
- Karin's Style Blog
- Frugal Fashionista
-
Fashion
We Bust a Move in TomTom's Spring 2010 Jewelry Collection
We know a thing or two about our what we like draped around around us for a night on the town: Our good friends, a hot dance partner, and pretty baubles of the likes of TomTom Jewelry's spring 2010...
-
Pipeline
Cushnie et Ochs' Spring Line Presents a Lookbook Full of Dramatic Model Poses
We imagine that there's this rush right when a model returns from strutting it on the runway—when she's totally basking in the post-catwalk glow and it might be getting to her head that she could take over the world...
-
Shopping News
The Perfect Outfit: A Fair Isle Topper For a Wintry Look That Works
A fair isle sweater may be a ski chalet staple, but with a few key styling tricks picked up from Ladina from Milan, you can avoid looking like a snow bunny. The secret to this perfect outfit is to...
-
Style and People
Becka Diamond Reveals The Secrets To Her Rock-Chic Ways
With her star on the rise, our muse of the moment reveals the secrets to her rock-chic ways.
-
Travel and Guides
Off The L: The Best Boutiques in Greenpoint and Williamsburg
The best boutiques in Greenpoint and Williamsburg.
-
Music
We've been devouring Cold Cave's releases for the past year or so, impatiently waiting for each release. Now, they've finally released their first LP, a dark, brooding synth-pop gem...

