Ashlyn Is The Designer Bringing The Art Of Japanese Tailoring To New York

Ashlynn Park’s CV is dotted with impressive bullet points. A native of South Korea, Park completed her undergraduate studies in fashion design at Ewha Womans University in Seoul before earning a scholarship to Tokyo’s elite Bunka Fashion College to pursue her master’s degree, winning Japan’s So-en Prize for her senior thesis. Since moving to New York in 2011, she has worked for design houses including Proenza Schouler and Calvin Klein, where she was part of Raf Simons’s atelier during his brief but impactful stint as creative director. Park started her own collection, Ashlyn, in 2021 and was a finalist for the LVMH Prize the following year. Her stockists now include Bergdorf Goodman, Maxfield, The Conservatory and Matches, as well as Space Mue and 10 Corso Como in Seoul.

Among the most formative stops on her journey from student to creative director of her own label was her four-year stint at Yohji Yamamoto after graduating from Bunka. There, Park was a patternmaker working on Yamamoto’s men’s and Y-3 collections. The Japanese school of patternmaking, particularly at the Comme des Garçons and Yamamoto level, is renowned for its regimented, ascetic approach, where the atelier is run with military precision – uniforms and all. Park spent a full year devoted to stitching her co-workers’ patterns, each silhouette, fabric choice, button, and pocket placement meticulously reviewed and questioned by the master himself.

That level of fastidiousness and self-reflection accompanied her from Tokyo to New York, where she infuses the precision of the Japanese school of tailoring with spontaneous draping techniques in her work at Ashlyn. Crisp Italian poplin shirting is softened with the romantic volume of a dropped shoulder, puffed sleeve, and abstract bustier details. A military-inspired black lambskin jacket gently cuts away from the body to create a sculpted hourglass form. A floral jacquard jacket inspired by a traditional Victorian riding habit has a curved, structured hemline and short tail. “I want Ashlyn to be recognised for its mastery of modern tailoring and pattern design, uncompromising quality, and a studio philosophy that counters waste [caused by] the industry’s tendency toward overproduction and a consumer pattern of overconsumption,” says Park, who presents during New York Fashion Week. “As a mother of two girls, the idea of saving the Earth and our environment for our future generations is a serious topic for me.” Her exacting patternmaking skills help her reduce waste and, rather than carrying an abundance of stock, Ashlyn only produces what is ordered.

Taken from Issue 1 of 10 Magazine USA – FASHION, ICON, DEVOTEE – on newsstands now. Order your copy here. 

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