FINAL HOME
Kosuke Tsumura’s Adaptable Storage-Garment Project
Forgotten Miscellaneous · 1994–2015
Archived on
Region
Japan; France; United Kingdom; United States; Luxembourg
Associated With
Kosuke Tsumura - designer; A-net, Inc. - manufacturer and commercial operator
Defining Feature
Adaptable storage compartments between the outer shell and lining
Status
Discontinued - commercial business ended in 2015; Tsumura continued the idea independently
Overview
FINAL HOME was Kosuke Tsumura’s Japanese storage-garment project, commercially launched in 1994.
Its adaptable nylon coats turned the space between shell and lining into portable storage. MoMA’s 1994 parka had 44 pockets for necessities, newspaper insulation or optional cushions, while other documented coats had more than 40.
A-net manufactured and operated the original label. Its retail business ended in 2015, after which Tsumura continued FINAL HOME as an independent project rather than reviving the former commercial label.
Why It Mattered
The project challenged the boundary between fashion and survival equipment, proposing that clothing could provide storage, insulation and a degree of preparedness when conventional shelter was unavailable. Tsumura connected the design to the vulnerability of people displaced by disaster, war or unemployment.
Its importance was demonstrated through the garment's adaptability: newspapers could provide insulation, compartments could carry essentials, and the wearer could change its contents according to circumstance. Recognition by MoMA and the Kyoto Costume Institute, alongside the 2013 Kanazawa exhibition, established its place in design history.
From Concept to Collection
- Tsumura’s official biography dates the storage-jacket concept to 1992; Musashino Art University associates FINAL HOME with a presentation that year.
- FINAL HOME was commercially established through A-net in 1994 and appeared in the Paris and Tokyo collections during its launch year.
- Musashino Art University records a FINAL HOME-related appearance at London Fashion Week in 1997.
Documented Coats and Construction
- MoMA’s 1994 parka, object 182.2006, has 44 pockets intended for supplies, newspaper insulation or optional cushions that could also adjust its fit.
- The Kyoto Costume Institute records a 1994 nylon coat, inventory numbers AC9420 and 1997-2, with more than 40 pockets.
- Tsumura described the usable space between the outer fabric and lining as storage for items including newspapers, emergency food and medical kits.
Exhibition, Closure and Continuation
- The 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa presented Philosophical Fashion 1: FINAL HOME from 12 January to 30 June 2013.
- The commercial FINAL HOME business ended in 2015; Tsumura’s later activity continued as an independent project rather than a revival of the original retail label.
- Tsumura proposed that used coats might be collected through volunteer organisations and passed to homeless people, but this was an intended route rather than a documented continuous programme.
Sources & Records
- Kosuke Tsumura — FINAL HOME project archive — Explains the designer’s storage-garment concept and proposed uses for newspapers, food and emergency supplies.
- MoMA — FINAL HOME 44-pocket parka, 1994 — Identifies A-net as manufacturer and specifies 44 pockets, newspaper insulation and optional down cushions.
- Kyoto Costume Institute — FINAL HOME coat, 1994 — Documents a surviving coat with more than 40 pockets and its adaptable insulation and storage functions.
- Fashion Press — FINAL HOME brand history — Dates the original brand’s commercial run from 1994 to 2015.
- Kosuke Tsumura — designer biography — Distinguishes the 1992 concept, 1994 commercial launch and independent project begun in 2015.
- Kosuke Tsumura on the origins of FINAL HOME — HOMEBREWER interview — Explains how an individual coat became a commercial label and later an independent project.
- Musashino Art University — Kosuke Tsumura profile — Corroborates the designer’s early FINAL HOME work and transition to an independent project in 2015.
- Kanazawa museum — Philosophical Fashion 1: FINAL HOME — Documents the 2013 museum exhibition and its interpretation of clothing as shelter.
Gallery
Credit
Photograph: Takashi Hatakeyama. © The Kyoto Costume Institute.
Licence
Historical Ephemera
Displayed for commentary, criticism, research and historical documentation where permitted by applicable law. No permission for reuse is granted.
Caption
A coat imagined as a last home. Kosuke Tsumura designed FINAL HOME so its pockets could be filled with newspaper for warmth or used to carry essentials.
Credit
Photograph: A-net, Inc. Collection: The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Licence
Historical Ephemera
Displayed for commentary, criticism, research and historical documentation where permitted by applicable law. No permission for reuse is granted.
Caption
Before anything was packed inside, the idea was already sewn in: 44 pockets for supplies, extra insulation or the optional down cushions.
Credit
Photograph: we-make-money-not-art, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Caption
Newspaper became part of the garment. This museum display makes FINAL HOME’s unusual approach to insulation visible through the nylon shell.