Korean Designers and Korean Fashion

August 4, 2025.

Q: What about today’s Korean designers? How do you view the current landscape of Korean fashion?

As mentioned above, today’s Korean designers are navigating three complementary trajectories: international runway exposure, domestic streetwear innovation, and costume design and styling for screen, stage, and theater.

The overall competitiveness of Korean fashion will ultimately hinge on a combination of design creativity and an agile, responsive business infrastructure. A dynamic interplay between heritage and innovation has become essential to shaping Korean popular culture across all stages of production and consumption. Looking ahead, Korea’s global fashion influence could be further amplified through technological advancements—such as AI integration, automated production systems, digital textile printing, and design platforms like CLO 3D.

From my perspective as a historian and educator, however, what remains underdeveloped is a deep and broad understanding of fashion history and its intersections with world history—knowledge that could offer designers meaningful insight into contemporary issues and conceptual development.

While Korea’s strengths lie in its vibrant streetwear scene and the powerful global reach of its popular culture, it is still difficult to identify a singular avant-garde couturier whose work carries the historic weight and visionary depth of designers like Alexander McQueen, Iris van Herpen, or Guo Pei.

Q: By the way, could you name some of your favorite Korean designers?

My selections reflect personal taste, but they also speak to the broader strengths of Korean design today.

In the realm of couture, Sohee Park of Miss Sohee (London-based) stands out for her intricate artistry and strikingly modern sensibility. Her sculptural silhouettes and meticulous embellishment make each piece a spectacle, merging drama with precision in a way that feels thoroughly contemporary.

On the lifestyle front, I am particularly drawn to Im Seonok of PARTsPARTs based in Seoul. Her collections articulate a thoughtful design language rooted in clarity and restraint. Working with her signature materials such as neoprene and polyester blends, she achieves a minimalist yet refined aesthetic through clean lines, precise tailoring, and uniquely sturdy seam finishes. Her garments go beyond comfort and functionality that deliver feels both elevated and effortlessly wearable.

Together, these two designers exemplify the diversity of Korean fashion—one steeped in couture fantasy, the other in technical refinement and daily elegance.