Culture is a language, and when you are unfamiliar with the vocabulary in a language you are very likely to misunderstand what is being said. You must first know the words in order to understand the message.
Yuge is a Japanese designer and has managed to synthesize this outfit by combining unrelated elements from a wide variety of sources in common everyday Japanese culture, modern Japanese street fashion, anime, manga, and even traditional Japanese arts.
Masks are very common in daily life in Japan. They are used by people when they have a cold, so they won’t give it on to others. In Japan, it shows consideration and respect for others.
Some of the clothes Yuge is wearing here are from street fashion trends such as fairy kei.
Many Japanese hair accessories are inspired by manga and anime. I didn’t ask Yuge why she choose the rabbit ears. She may even have chosen them without being consciously aware of how and when she was influenced by a certain input.
The traditional Japanese art of Kinbaku (rope-tying) has a long history going back to Japan’s Edo Period (1603-1868). Whereas pain might play a more important role in Western style rope tying, aesthetics play a very important role in Kinbaku.
If you can only see rope tying from the non-Japanese perspective, you will completely misunderstand what is being said in this picture.
If you are familiar with the sources, you realize that Yuge has done an amazing job here. If you are not, it is just weird and mystifying.
So, if you feel mystified or confused by these photos (and even many Japanese themselves will be), realize you still have to learn a lot about Japanese traditional and pop culture. I hope you’ll see that as a challenge to learn more!
Inspired by the stunningly creative street fashion that exploded on the streets of Tokyo and Osaka in the late 1990’s, photo-journalist Kjeld Duits launched JAPANESE STREETS in 2002. This makes JS one of the first fashion blogs on the net, and the very first to cover Japanese street fashion.
Recent photos by Kjeld Duits:
The second part of this two part series focuses on the people at Design Festa 8 comments
The first part of this two part series focuses on the art at Design Festa 4 comments
Dorothy Vacance—one of Tokyo’s hidden gems—is offering really cute embroidered patches featuring traditional images of Japan 0 comments
One of Tokyo’s most important fashion and design exhibitions, rooms, took place again this week. JAPANESE STREETS picked a few favorites 3 comments
Last year, Israel’s famous Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art exhibited over 100 of JAPANESE STREETS photographs 6 comments