Hanae Mori is known as a pioneer. The first Asian fashion designer to break into the exclusive world of haute couture, died on August 11th, aged 96 in her home in Tokyo.
The Japanese designer, whose elegant creations were worn by high-profile figures from Grace Kelly, Hillary Clinton to Empress Masako was born in Shimane prefecture, Japan, in 1926. Mori opened her first Tokyo studio, in a noodle store, in 1951. Much of her early career was dedicated to making costumes for the movie industry during a period now considered the golden age of Japanese cinema.
Her visits to New York and Paris in the 1960s proved formative, especially the encounter with Coco Chanel who suggested she should try on a bright orange suit.
She did just that, often blending Western silhouettes with Asian-style motifs, like the butterflies that would later see her dubbed “Madame Butterfly.” Mori staged her first overseas show, themed “East Meets West,” in New York in 1965. And from there she began paving the way for more successful Japanese designers to follow, such as Kansai Yamamoto, Rei Kawabuko or Issey Miyake who passed away on August 9th, two days before her.
Together with husband and business partner, Ken, she grew her label and opened her showroom in New York in 1973 and, four years later, an atelier on Paris’ prestigious Avenue Montaigne.
Despite launching a successful fragrance company, Mori’s firm faced major financial difficulties in the 1990s. In 2002, the year she was named an Officer of France’s Legion of Honor, she sold off parts of her business and filed for bankruptcy protection, according to the New York Times. She closed her Paris maison two years later, effectively entering retirement. But she remained active in her later years, designing costumes for operas and collaborating on various exhibitions honoring her decades-long career.
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