For Spring/Summer 2003, Comme des Garçons Homme saw Junya Watanabe lean into pop-inflected chaos, using striking visuals as a rebellion against the conventional codes of menswear. A reoccurring theme already familiar in his earlier work. While most designers at the time embraced minimalism and clean tailoring, Watanabe turned his focus to 1950s Cuba.
The collection celebrated the island’s golden era and one of its most iconic exports—cigars. Through bold, comic-style graphics. Classic tailoring acted as the base, disrupted by loud prints, Spanish phrases, and pop-art caricatures. It was empowering, nostalgic, and unmistakably Comme.
This particular denim jacket might look ordinary at first glance. But when flipped inside out (yes, it’s reversible), it reveals vivid layers of tropical nostalgia. Scene of everyday life in a sun-soaked, cigar-rich Cuba. The imagery captures both a romanticized paradise and a resilient nation, maintaining cultural identity in the face of geopolitical isolation and economic hardship.
In many ways, the jacket embodies the rebellious wit that defined early 2000s Comme des Garçons and Junya Watanabe. Unconventional techniques and silhouettes mock the seriousness of traditional menswear, question the commodification of culture, and serve as a device for self-empowerment.
