InfluentialDesigners(/)

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YohjiYamamoto(1943-Present)
YohjiYamamotoisaJapanesedesignerwhoisbasedin

TokyoandParis.Heiswellknownforhistailoringskillsand
new,clean,andcrispdesigns.Heisknowntobeoneofthefew
designerswhereallagesfromseventeentosixty,findshis
designsappealingandcool.Hehasmadeanamazingname
forhimselfandhasseverallineswithinhisbrand,andevenhis
ownmagazinecalledAMAGAZINE.IchoseYamamotobecause
Ilovehowdarkhisdesignsareandhowwelltheyaremade.
YAMAMOTO'SFALL/WINTER2012/2013RUNWAYSHOW
(HTTP://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=WHLYOK8H3W8)

PhotocourtesyofBusinessInsider

Biography
YohjiYamamotowasborninYokohama,Japanin1943makinghim69thisyear.Hewona

competitiontotraveltoParisinwhichhespentninemonthsattemptingtosellhisfashionsketches
todesignersandmagazinesbutfailedtosellevenone.HelaterreturnedtoTokyowitheven
biggerideasforhisnextreadytowearline.Hestartedmakingclothesforhismothersfriendsand
eventuallyforhisowncollections.HeattractedaJapanesebuyerwithoneofhiscollectionthat
consistedentirelyofraincoatsandsoonhasordersflowinginforhisdesigns.Yamamotoworked
asafreelancedesignerforseveralyearsbeforeopeninguphisowncompanyin1972.Yamamoto
createdgarmentsthatwerelooseandflows,comfortable,andchicwhichwastheexactoppositeof
thestylescomingoutofParisatthattime.Hewasbringingsomethingdifferenttothetableand
hadamassivepositiveresponsetohisdesigns.Inthemid70s,hestartscollaboratingwith
JapanesedesignerReiKawakubo,whomhewouldromanticallygetinvolvedwith.Bothdesigners
arestillinarelationshiptothisday.Herpictureistotheright.
PhotocourtesyofNewYorkTimes

In1981,heopeneduphisownboutiqueinParisandhisdesignstookParisbystorm.Noone

haseverseensuchdark,billowing,andlayeredclothinguntilheshowedupandhisdesignswere
nowasuccessworldwide.HisclothinglineYsandYsforMencarryluxurypiecesfromtops,
bottoms,dresses,andaccessoriessuchasshoes,scarves,hats,andjewelry.Heisstilldesigning
todayandevencollaboratedwithAdidasin2000foraoneseasonsneakerdeal.Hisplanisto
createthesneakerheelwhichisahugestepforAdidasandYamamotohimself.Apictureofone
ofthesneakerheelsistotheleft.
PhotocourtesyofAdidas

BeforeYohjiYamamoto,dressmakerswereseenashumbletradesmen,buttoYamamoto,hefeltthatdesigningclotheswasas
creativeacallingasbeinganartist.YamamotoisALLABOUTQUALITY.Eventhoughhisdesignesareelegant,sophisticated,and
showstopping,thethingthatYamamotoprizesthemostabouthisgarmentsarehisuseoffabrics,whichheonlyusedfabricsmade
bythefamilyrunChisomillinKyotowhichwasestablishedin1555whenitmademonksclothingalongsidethefinestceremonial
robesandkimonos.Yamamotossignatureishisenlarged,colorlesssilhouetteswithlayersandmultipletextures.Yamamotoisknown
asanuncompromisingandnontraditionalistsculpturaldesignerwithcontemporarydesigns.Overtheyears,Yamamotoshave
becomemorefittedforcouturebuthestillkeepshissignaturedesignsaround.Yamamotoisinspiredbyqualitythereforedoesnotlike
thetrendoffastfashionsuchasH&MorForever21becausetheytakeawaythequalityofclothing.Heexplainedhisopinion
throughquotesinaninterviewwithWomensWearDaily

Becareful.Youdontneedtobe[shoppingatfastfashionstores],especially
youngpeople.Theyarebeautifulnaturally,becausetheyareyoung.Sothey
shouldevenwearsimplejeansandaTshirt.Itsenough.
Dontbetoomuchfashionable.Thebrandadvertisingismakingyoucrazy.
Youdontneedtobetoosexy.Youaresexyenough."
Andmypersonalfavorite
Letmetalklikeanoldman.Youngpeople,becareful.Beautifulthingsare
disappearingeveryday.

PhotocourtesyofStylesight.comYohjiYamamotoFall/Winter2012

CriticalAnalysis
The1970swasadecadethatfocusedonmovements,equalcivilrights,anddepression.TheGreatDepressionhappenedthis
timesothenationwasgoingthroughatoughtime.AfricanAmericans,gays,andwomenwerefightingfortheirrightsandmovements
likeantiwarprotests,andenvironmentalism,feminism,andyouthsuffragewerestirringup.The70swereroughbutthroughcinema
andmusic,the70shadapositiveside.Greaseisoneofthebiggesthitsthathappenedinthe70s,withiconicbadboysinleather
jacketsandgreaseintheirhair.Theywereedgy,andrebellious,justlikeYamamotohimself.Yamamotodoesnotlistentotrends,but
doeswhateverhewantstodo.Beingtherebelthatheis,hewenttheoppositedirectionofcouturewearinParisatthetimeand
avoideddoingbrightcolorswithtypicalsilhouettes.Heusesadarkpalettewhichexpressesthedarksideofthetimesandtheflairin
hisdesignsalsoreflectstheflairclothinginthediscooutfitsofthe70s.Heneverreallylooksforinspirationinotherdesignersbesides
ReiKawakubo,butonlyinhimself.
YohjiYamamotoisaniconbecauseofhisasymmetrical,oversizedsilhouettes,blackcolors,drapery,texturesandtheavant
gardespiritinhisdesignsthatnootherdesignerdoes.Hehascreatedgarmentsaftergarmentsusingthesamethemeanddesign
ethicbutnoneofthemlookthesame.Theyareallindividuallyuniqueandexpressesadifferentemotion.Heisabletogoagainstthe
biggesttrendstocreatehisownandsuccessfullymarkethisproducts.Hereallysetstheexamplethatyoucannotalwaysdowhat
peopleexpectyoutodo,andtoalwayssticktowhatyouarepassionateabout.Hisuseoftrulyluxuriousfabricsisinspiringand
reflectshispassionforquality.Thisbeliefhasinspiredotherdesignerstousemorequalityintheirdesignsaswell.

PhotocourtesyofVogueYamamotoSpring2011

PhotocourtesyofVogueYamamotoSpring2010

PhotocourtseyofVogueYamamotoSpring2011with70'sprintleggings

PhotocourtesyofVogueYamamotoSpring2009

Hisdesignsaredarkandignitesafireinyouwhenyouseeitdowntherunway.Yamamotoisadesignerwhotrulycaresabouthis
designsandthequalitythemcomein,sobuyingoneofhispiecesiswortheverypenny.HisdesignaestheticsweresimilartoRei
Kawakubotheywouldbothhavemanyzippers,pockets,andotherextradetailsintheirdesignsthatnormallywouldnotbewhere
theyare.ThewayYamamotodrapeshisclothesunstructured,loose,anddramaticisthecorereasonwhyheissuchaniconic
designer.

PhotocourtesyofStylesight.comYohjiYamamotoFall/Winter2010

AnalysisofFutureTrends
Withsuchdedicationtohiscreationsandperfectexecutionincreatingthesegarments,itishardnottofollowYohjiYamamoto's
footstepsforasuccessfulandbeautifulcollection.Yamamotohasinspiredmanyotherdesignerswithhisdesignethics,includinghis

owndaughter,LimiFeu.Althoughsheneverwantedtobeadesigneratfirst,sheeventuallycamearoundtofollowherfather'strends.
Youcanseealotofhisinfluencesinherdesignsincluding,darkcolors,asymmetry,flowy,andandrogyny.Likefather,likedaughter,
Feustickstoasimilardesignethicasherfatheranditreflectsbeautifullyontherunway.Afteralookatoneofhershows,youwould
havethoughyousawYamamoto's!TheimagesbelowarefromhersecondrunwayshowinParis.

PhotoscourtesyofFashionDirectoryLimiFeuWinter2009

Yamamotohassetsignificanttrendsthatwillalwaysbearound.Oneofhistrendsisactuallynotfollowingpopulartrends.
Instead,hesaysthathewants,timelesseleganceandhasachievedjustthat.Hisgarmentshavewithstoodtimewithhiscleanlines,
qualitymaterial,andlayering.Manydesignersbeforewerescaredtoproducegarmentsthatwouldnotappealtothepublic,but
Yamamotodoesnotcarebecausehedesignsforart,notmoney.Atremendousamountoftimegoesintoeachgarmentandtailored
perfectlyontoahumanbody.Yamamotoisalsowellknownforhistailoredgarmentsanddrapery.Hehastheabilitytocreateoutfits
thatlookandmoveeffortlessly.Sinceitlooksstunningontherunway,manyotherdesignershavestarteddoingthisapproach.

PhotocourtesyofVogueYamamotoFall2005

PhotocourtesyofFashionBombDailyJeanPaulGaultierFall2011

PhotocourtesyofVogueYamamotoSpring2007

PhotocourtesyofStylesight.comDior2012

ThisishowYamamotohascreatedalastingsignaturesilhouetteinthefashionindustry.Hisclothingappearsasifconstantly
beingblownbythewindbecausetheymovesoeffortlessly.Beforehim,nobodydaredtocreatetheclean,welltailored,dark,and

oversizedlookslikehedid.Heissopreciseabouttheexecutionofthegarmentsanditpaysoffbeautifullyintheend.Ipersonallyown
alotofsimilaritemsthatYamamotohasproducedbecauseIlovetheallblacklook.MyclosetcontainsmostlyblackclothesandI
personallyliketogoforthewelltailoredlookaswell.Myblazersremindmeofhimbecausetheyarefittedtothebodysowelland
theyhavemultiplebuttonsandzippersthatYamamotolikestoaddtohisgarments.Althoughmyclothingdoesnothavetheenhanced
silhouettesthatYamamotohas,therearestillelementsinhisdesignsthatreflectinmywardrobe.Hisstyleishardtoignoreandcan
beseenonmanycelebrities,andevenyouraveragejoe.ThisiswhyYohjiYamamotohascreatedalastingimpactonthefashion
industry.

Citations
Bhasin,Kim."LegendaryDesignerYohjiYamamoto:'BrandAdvertisingIsMakingYouCrazy."BusinessInsider.BusinessInsider,
1
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."YohjiYamamoto."FashionModelDirectory.FashionModelDirectory.Web.19Nov2012.
<http://www.fashionmodeldirectory.com/designers/yohjiyamamoto/>.
."ReiKawakubo."TheNewYorkTimes.TheNewYorkTimes.Web.19Nov2012.
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/k/rei_kawakubo/index.html
(http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/k/rei_kawakubo/index.html)/>.
.YohjiYamamoto.2010.StyleSight,Paris.Web.19Nov2012.<http://blog.stylesight.com/runway/yohjiyamamoto2>.
YohjiYamamoto.2012.StyleSight,Paris.Web.19Nov2012.<http://blog.stylesight.com/runway/yohjiyamamoto10>.
GradSchoolProfile:SchooloftheArtInstituteofChicago.2011.WornThrough,Chicago.Web.19Nov2012.
<http://www.wornthrough.com/2011/06/>.
P.,Dora.LimiFeu,atrueYamamoto.2008.FashionDirectory,Paris.Web.19Nov2012.<http://girldir.com/newsevents/limifeu
trueyamamoto>.
AdidasY3.2012.AdidasWeb.30Nov2012.<http://www.adidas.com/us/content/Y3>.
YOHJIYAMAMOTO.N.d.VogueWeb.30Nov2012.<http://www.vogue.com/voguepedia/Yohji_Yamamoto>.
ShowReview:JeanPaulGaultierFall2011Couture.N.d.FashionBombDailyWeb.30Nov2012.
<http://fashionbombdaily.com/2011/07/07/showreviewjeanpaulgaultierfall2011couture/>.
,ed."YohjiYamamoto."TheNewYorkTimes.TheNewYorkTimes,292012.Web.29Oct2012.
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/y/yohji_yamamoto/index.html>.

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