From Tokyo’s trendsetting Harajuku shopping district, to the timeless artistry of kimonos crafted in Kyoto, Japanese style and culture are growing sources of inspiration for American fashion designers and artists.
The influence has emerged in a variety of forms — Tokyo street-style couture and restyled traditional kimonos have appeared on New York fashion runways, while chic Los Angeles boutiques showcase fashion jewelry adorned with variations on Hello Kitty, the cute cat character.
“Japanese culture definitely influences American fashion,” said Jason Campbell, founder and editor in chief of JC Report, a global fashion trend-tracking website, set to launch in a Japanese format this February.
For nearly 30 years, Tokyo’s Harajuku district, with its numerous clothing stores and trendy boutiques, has attracted multitudes of fashion-savvy youth who have developed an array of vibrant subcultures, such as the lace-wearing ‘ gothic Lolitas’ and brightly coiffed punk rockers.
In late 2004, pop-star-turned-designer Gwen Stefani introduced American fans to Harajuku’s colorful culture with her debut solo album “Love. Angel. Music. Baby.,” featuring “Harajuku Girls,” an ode to the district’s fashionable young women.
Then, last year, the 36-year-old lead singer for No Doubt launched her co-designed high-end apparel line L.A.M.B., followed by a collection of casual wear and accessories called “Harajuku Lovers: A Fatal Attraction to Cuteness,” featuring playful street-style designs inspired by her fondness for Harajuku fashion.
“Customers love the line and they love Gwen Stefani,” said Yvonne Leung, store manager of the trendsetting Kitson store in Los Angeles. The celebrity shopping hotspot was the first retailer to carry the Harajuku Lovers line.
“It’s Gwen that’s brought a different part of Japan to us. At this point, she’s turned Harajuku Lovers into such a brand itself that it’s like another Hello Kitty,” Leung said.
Stefani recently completed a U.S. concert tour which featured four female dancers, three of them Japanese, dressed in a series of Harajuku-style costumes and elaborate street ware.
Besides Stefani, traditional American companies, including Walt Disney, are staking their claim on Harajuku’s rapidly evolving fashion scene.
Jeff Daggett, vice president of Disney’s Softlines-Japan, regularly monitors style trends in Harajuku, including the recent popularity of eye treatments and fashion contact lenses. He said he and other observers share their findings with their counterparts throughout Asia and in Disney’s global Softlines divisions.
Disney also participates in trends by developing partnerships with Japanese fashion companies. In 2004, the company worked with Tokyo-based retro-punk label Hysteric Glamour to create high-end T-shirts featuring Tinker Bell, the blonde pixie of “Peter Pan” fame.
“It was a collaboration of two unexpected companies. Disney with their rich heritage of characters and Hysteric because of their strong fashion and trendsetting reputation,” said Dennis Green, senior vice president of Creative for Disney Softlines, who managed the company’s relationship with Hysteric Glamour.
The T-shirts, which portrayed Tinker Bell in a backdrop of punk and graffiti scenes, retailed for around $100 at Hysteric Glamour’s trendy Harajuku store, and the popular Fred Segal boutique in Los Angeles.
While Tokyo’s hip fashion region remains a vibrant fashion influence, some progressive American designers are also finding inspiration in traditional elements of Japanese culture.
New York design duo Heatherette incorporate style influences from urban London, New York and Japan into their adventurous fashions. Their designs typically feature bold, contrasting patterns, bright colors, and playful, iconic imagery.
In 2003, the pair, consisting of Richie Rich, 29, and Traver Rains, 28, took their design process to Japan, as guests of a Kyoto-based program to promote modern interpretations of traditional kimono artistry.
As participants, Rich and Rains lived in Kyoto and observed traditional Japanese arts, including the weaving of silk used for kimonos. The two later used silk and fabric from vintage and new kimonos for their spring 2004 collection.
“The fabric is so elegant that you almost can’t demystify the beauty of it — the patterns just bounce off the fabrics,” Rich said. “When we were cutting into the fabrics it was like a guilty pleasure, just knowing the intensity of the work,” he said.
Rich, a former ice skater, and Rains, a rodeo champion, reinvented the kimonos in a series of vibrant designs, including dramatic robes in shimmering gold and red, and patchwork-style skirts in a range of delicate white, green and blue patterns.
They premiered their designs in 2003 in Osaka, followed by a colorful New York show titled “From Kyoto with Love,” which also featured models wearing 30 vintage kimonos brought from Kyoto.
“In our Kyoto collection, I think they thought we were going to come up with really over the top, crazy looks, but instead we found the designs almost shaped themselves into traditional-feeling pieces,” said Rich.
Heatherette are also looking to modern Japanese trends for inspiration. They currently have a collection of handbags and T-shirts labeled Hello Kitty Couture by Heatherette, retailing in Japan. The iconic cat character will grace the pair’s junior apparel line in America this June.
Rich also confirmed plans for Heatherette to design clothes for the popular Japanese pop duo Puffy AmiYumi, next season.
For other designers, Japanese style and culture have been long-standing sources of influence and inspiration.
Los Angeles-based fashion jewelry designer Tarina Tarantino has admired Japanese style, notably the Harajuku scene and famed character Hello Kitty, for decades.
“I have been a fan of Hello Kitty for over 30 years,” Tarantino said, from her sparkling new boutique in L.A.’s hip Melrose neighborhood.
After forming her business in 1995 with husband and now company CEO Alfonso Campos, 35, Tarantino, 34, was able to transform her love of jewelry and Hello Kitty into a creative and successful venture.
In 2002, Tokyo-based Sanrio Co. invited Tarantino, a former fashion model, to design jewelry based on their beloved cat character.
She created a series of necklaces, bracelets, rings, and hair ornaments adorned with her hip take on Hello Kitty. Tarantino named the character Pink Head, after her fuchsia-colored hairstyle, inspired by the designer’s own bright trademark locks.
“Everyone loves her,” said Tarantino fondly of her Pink Head creation. “She’s an alternative to Hello Kitty. This is a very special collection — she’s unique to our company,” she said.
Tarantino has developed storylines for the limited Pink Head pieces, including the recent Russian Nouveau collection, featuring the character as a Russian princess with long pink locks, topped by a tiara.
“We like to give her a story for each collection that we do every season, because that way there’s something for the customer to know about the pieces,” said Tarantino, who emphasizes the importance of wrapping customer purchases with detail and artistry, inspired by her admiration of Japanese gift-giving.
Tarantino and her Pink Head creations are enjoying international success with in-store boutiques in Italy and Korea. And in a new deal with Tokyo-based Itochu Timeless, 17 Tarina Tarantino stores will launch in Japan during the next three years.
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