Japanese fashion designer Kansai Yamamoto (山本 寛斎, Yamamoto Kansai) passed away on July 21, after suffering acute myeloid leukemia since March 2020. His death was announced by his daughter, actress Mirai Yamamoto, through the official Instagram account of the designer.
Born in 1944 in Yokohama, Japan, Kansai Yamamoto studied civil engineering in high school, majoring in English at Nippon University before he decided to quit his studies and pursue his dreams.
He entered Junko Koshino's workshop as a stitcher, and, in 1967, won a major award, the Soen prize by the Bunka Fashion College. Four years later, in 1971, he opened his own company and showcased his first collection in London and in the United States at Hess's Department Store in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Vogue Italia celebrated Japan with a long reportage about fashion and culture published on the June 1971 issue. The fashion section of the shoot was an exploration of different cities in Japan and Tokyo featured a picture of Kansai Yamamoto, radiantly smiling, flanked by two models.
The magazine stated his designs were pure avant-garde and that Yamamoto combined traditions with pop. In the photograph accompanying the piece about Tokyo, Yamamoto wore a second skin tattoo shirt (that perfectly matched with the print on his umbrella) an intarsia vest with the Japanese character spelling the word "sushi", baseball style pants accessorised with a tubular neon coloured belt and knee-high black boots (the models wore instead designs by Raphaëlle; sandals by Bologna & Figli).
His kaleidoscopic, colourful and flamboyant creations and theatrical layered garments were supposed to spread "genki", a Japanese word meaning having energy, pep, or health, and were inspired by the Japanese word "Basara" that means to dress freely, with a stylish extravagance. This concept is indeed the opposite of the Japanese wabi-sabi aesthetic, that is something underplayed and modest.
In his bright and bold colours Yamamoto would combine inspirations from Japanese culture and traditions such as elements from the Kabuki theatre or the face of a Kabuki samurai actor, irezumi tattoos (popular in Japan during the Edo period), traditional Japanese firefighters' clothing (the "bull's eye" cape was for example constructed from a full circle of fabric, like the capes worn by samurai fire wardens) and a samurai archer's target, the kasumi-mato. His high-heeled clogs were inspired by traditional Japanese okobo, lacquered platform geta with straps worn during the summer by apprentice geisha.
Yamamoto developed a reputation as an avant-garde designer and soon became well-known for his connection with David Bowie. He designed for him many futuristic stage costumes that contributed to the creation of the Ziggy Stardust character.
After his final collection (Autumn/Winter 1992), he lent his name to licensed products (including eyeglasses and tableware), and designed the Skyliner train, unveiled in 2010, that connects Japan's Narita Airport with central Tokyo.
He also started producing his "Super Shows". Organised in Moscow, New Delhi and Tokyo, these events combined fashion with music, dance and entertainment on a large scale. Throughout the decades he collaborated with many different brands, including Louis Vuitton (he developed kabuki-inspired patterns and prints for the luxury house's Resort 2018 collection).
In 2013 the Victoria & Albert Museum in London organised a "Fashion in Motion" event dedicated to Kansai Yamamoto, that included archive pieces spanning his entire career plus specially made pieces. The show also featured recreations of some of his designs worn by David Bowie on the 1973 Aladdin Sane tour, such as the "Tokyo Pop" vinyl suit, characterised by a black and white optical motif and a striking shape.
Anticipated by another similar costume that appeared in 1971 on the cover of Harpers and Queen magazine (photographed by Hiroshi Yoda), the suit was characterised by a shape reminiscent of traditional Japanese clothes such as wide leg samurai pants, but also borrowed from other designs including Oskar Schlemmer's costumes for the Triadisches Ballett. Donned during a concert at the Long Beach Arena in Los Angeles (10th March 1973), the suit reappered again in 1989 in a photoshoot of David Bowie by Herb Ritts.
Bowie's androgyny fascinated Yamamoto who saw him as the perfect model for his genderless designs such as his body-con knitted jumpsuits (often included in exhibitions about Bowie) and intarsia jumpers featuring large masks or the caricatured face of the yakko, the servant of samurai during the Edo period in Japan, graphic motifs that went on inspiring many contemporary designers and collections including Givenchy's A/W 17.
In 2008, an exhibit named "Netsuki Shinten: Kansai Genki Shugi" (or "Passionate Exhibit: The Energy Principle of Kansai") was held at the Edo-Tokyo Museum. In 2009, a major retrospective of Yamamoto's work was exhibited at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, while Yamamoto received an indirect tribute last year when Mattel released a "David Bowie" Barbie dressed in a mini replica of a costume designed for the singer by Freddie Burretti alongside Kansai Yamamoto, matched with boots designed and made by Kansai Yamamoto.
In a message on the Instagram page of the designer. Mirai Yamamoto, the designer's daugher stated: "In my eyes, my father was not only the eclectic and energetic soul that the world knew him as, but someone who was also thoughtful, kind-hearted, and affectionate. He valued communication and showered me with love throughout my entire life."
"He also taught me to persist throughout failures and to never let go of a positive, forward-looking mindset. He viewed challenges as opportunities for self-development and always believed in the brighter days ahead." His daughter promised she will continue working at Kansai Super Studio, alongside her acting career, and spread Kansai Yamamoto's spirit of "Genki" to the world.
Comments