![]() She also explained that it came in handy on occasions when she crossed paths with VIPs from around the world from various cultures, religions, and political backgrounds. Reflecting on the episode she said, “It was an experience that taught me the importance of people-watching for a designer.” Following the film director’s orders, Mori intently observed bar hostesses as they worked on the streets of Ginza. One time, she had to create a costume for a sexy geisha character. From the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s, along with renowned film directors and popular movie stars, Mori’s costume creations also played a key role in the golden age of the Japanese film industry. “I wanted beautiful clothes to wear, so I used a sewing machine and did my best to be creative.” Her taste was inherited from her father, a medical practitioner and lover of art and stylish fashion.Īfter the war, Mori became bored with being a housewife and started on her path as a designer. They longed for the elegant ballroom gowns of the story. While living in fear of death due to the air raids in Tokyo, she and her college friends doing service as laborers would read a tattered copy of Gone With the Wind. The designer graced the world like a butterfly, but was actually a woman with a rebellious spirit.īehind Mori’s pursuit of beauty were her harrowing experiences during the war. Hanae Mori, Photo from Sankei Archives, 1969. Until 2021, she also used her hands to create costumes for the opera. Mori often brought attention to the threat faced by these sectors. And as she said, for 27 years she “blazed on only looking ahead.”īefore she knew it, both the haute couture industry and the Japanese handicrafts sector – which supported kimono culture – were faltering. She was the only Japanese designer to be officially listed as a member in the world of haute couture in Paris - the platform where the ultimate in handcrafted creations come together.įrom exquisitely beaded embroideries and feather decorations to elegant drapes, Mori introduced Eastern beauty – like kimono and the butterfly pattern she became known for – to the traditional French fashion culture. Mori has always emphasized the importance of transmitting the art of handwork to future generations. Hanae Mori was a pioneering Japanese fashion designer and Vice-Chairwoman of the Japan Art Association, which sponsors The Praemium Imperiale international arts awards. “When we stop making things with our hands, I feel our existence becomes insubstantial.”
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