“Madame Butterfly”: Japanese fashion designer Hanae Mori …

She was considered a pioneer, also for the recently deceased Issey Miyake. At the end of the seventies, she was the first Japanese woman to be accepted into the elite Parisian circle of creators of haute couture.

She has been nicknamed “Madame Butterfly” because of her distinctive butterfly motif. Japanese fashion pioneer Hana Mori died at the age of 96 on August 11 at her home in Tokyo, Japanese media reported. In 1977, Mori became the first Japanese woman to join the elite circle of Parisian haute couture designers.

Among the clients of her sophisticated handmade creations are the wife of US President Nancy Reagan, American actress and Academy Award winner Grace Kelly and countless members of Japanese high society.

Mori also designed a white dress for the ex-wife of Japanese Emperor Masako, which she wore during a wedding show in 1993. She also created costumes for hundreds of 1950s Japanese films. In Japanese society, which is still dominated by men, Mori was one of the few women in her country who ran an international business.

Far East Pioneer

Born in Shimane Prefecture, western Japan, in 1926, she moved with her family to Tokyo and graduated from Tokyo Women’s Christian University. Having opened her first studio in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district at the age of 25, she caused a stir in 1965 with her first overseas fashion show, East Meets West – in New York, incorporating kimono designs into her clothing range.

Japanese fashion greats like this Issey Miyake died in early August followed her path. In 2004, she closed her Paris atelier after her last fashion show, but Hanae Mori stores in Tokyo remained open. Its fragrances can still be purchased globally.

(APA / red)