The design universe that is Comme des Garçons just shrank a little with the announcement today that the brand is closing its high-concept Tao Comme des Garçons label. But it isn’t losing the star altogether. “Tao wants to have a change of lifestyle and prefers to concentrate her creative energies on the ever popular label Tricot Comme des Garçons, shown in Tokyo twice a year,” said a press release. “We are sure all fans of Tao will continue to find within the Tricot Comme des Garçons collection the beautiful creations that embodied Tao hitherto.”

Tao worked closely with Junya Watanabe, another key player in the Comme family. The final presentation of the line, founded in 2005 by Rei Kawakubo protégé Tao Kurihara, a graduate of Central St Martins, is the spring 2011 collection shown in Paris last October.