Philomena Keet - Tokyo Fashion City: A Detailed Guide to Tokyo’s Trendiest Fashion Districts

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I could not have compiled this book from my own knowledge of the city alone: thank you to all those who made suggestions and rallied to my calls for information on various neighborhoods, particularly those who gave me guided tours, like Patrick Galbraith in Akihabara and Andrew Lee in Daikanyama. I am grateful, too, to the many fellow Tokyo denizens who assisted me with other aspects of the project, whether by helping look after my boys, reviewing the text, putting me in touch with people, or just ladling out encouragement. So thank you, in no particular order, to: Elizabeth Tinsley, Emiko Ota-Boylan, Shai Ohayon, Danielle Demetriou, Colleen Sheils, Satchie Raudzus, Cheryl Mori, Rachel Ferguson, Fuyuri Kobayashi, Kai Satake, Anna Farrier, Sarah Everitt Furuya, Victoria Kwee, all the staff at Ryozan Park, and any other friends whose small kindnesses regarding the book I may have forgotten. Thank you also to those who produce the websites listed under Tips and Resources; these were a rich source of inspiration, particularly Misha Janettes Tokyo Fashion Diaries, David Marxs Neojaponisme, and Tokyo Telephone, all of which offer invaluable information and commentary on aspects of Tokyo fashion and its history.

I would like to thank Cathy Layne, my editor (who unfortunately could not see this project through to the end), for getting it off the ground and guiding me through the bulk of the groundwork. And thank you to all those at Tuttle, the books publisher, for their input and diligence.

Most importantly, I would like to thank photographer Yuri Manabe for her wonderful images and for being such a good and chipper companion, once again, throughout the duration of this project.

Finally, thank you to my family: my encouraging parents; my husband for his unswerving support and patience; and my two boys, particularly the smallest, my little assistant, who accompanied Yuri and me to the majority of photo shoots for this project, both inside my growing belly and, once he was born, strapped to my front. Im sure he charmed more people into having their photo taken than Yuri and I could have achieved alone.

And thank you, Tokyo, for being so endlessly fascinating.

CHAPTER 1

Harajuku & Omotesando

GROUND ZERO IN TOKYOS INCREDIBLE FASHION UNIVERSE

Tokyos Style Mecca

FROM HIGH TO LOW FASHION AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

S preading eastward from the green of Yoyogi park and the solemn sanctity of Meiji Shrine is Tokyos most diverse, concentrated, and perhaps famous fashion landscape. In fact, within this one sprawling location spanning the three train stations of Harajuku, Meiji-jingumae, and Omotesando are three areas that, despite blending geographically into each other, are distinct in terms of their fashions, architecture, and atmospheres: Harajuku, Omotesando, and Minami-Aoyama. Home of the residences of American Occupation forces in the postwar years, the district has since then held the exciting promise of the foreign, attracting a rich succession of zoku youth tribes, and laying the foundations for its fashion prowess.

HARAJUKU MAGIC

Across the train tracks from the otherworldly Meiji Shrine, Harajuku has a more irreverent sense of the magical and wondrous about it: its reputation as a melting pot for fashion, combining trends and throwing out radical outfits, precedes it both in Japan and around the world. The encroachment of global fast fashion and broad gentrification has caused many to bemoan the loss of Harajukus golden years. Those were the heady days of the hokoten pedestrian paradise in the 1990s, when the main thoroughfare was closed to traffic, providing a breeding and parade ground for new fashions. The next decade saw the live bands in Yoyogi Park and the cosplayers on the bridge between Harajuku station and Meiji Shrine. Although these scenes have faded away, the maze of backstreets still deliver on the Harajuku promise of spectacular style.

GRAND OMOTESANDO

Omotesando, meaning main shrine approach, is historically the road that leads to Meiji Shrine. While the huge stone lanterns standing at its major junctions serve as reminders of its original function, it has now become home to a reverence of a very different kind, as shoppers and tourists alike gawp at the polished exteriors and tempting offerings of the many luxury shops that line the wide boulevard.

HIGH FASHION IN AOYAMA

Walking away from Harajuku station along Omotesando, you will cross first Meiji-dori and then Aoyama-dori into Minami-Aoyama. The short stretch of Omotesando between this crossing and the Nezu Museum, and the side streets shooting off it, are an enclave of stylish sophistication. Here, away from the traffic and bustle of the main Omotesando thoroughfare, you will find the cream of international Japanese fashion, with stores from heavyweights Yohji Yamamoto, Comme des Garons, and Issey Miyake, as well as next-generation stars like Undercover, thrown into the mix of domestic and international boutiques.

A DAY OUT

Not only is the area worth visiting for an exhaustive day of shopping, but the architecture and cityscape themselves make for a stimulating stroll. Youll weave between the backstreetscrammed with a tangle of shops and telephone polesand the grand, leafy boulevard studded with the striking flagship creations of global architectural super-stars. And of course this is prime people-watching territory: teenyboppers mix with avant-garde fashion lovers and smartly attired young adults.

Stone lanterns attest to Omotesando's original purpose as the approach to Meiji Shrine.