The fashion designer Kenzo Takada, founder of the Kenzo label, has died from COVID-19, aged 81.
He was known for his love of graphics, patterning and bright colours, his designs taking influence from traditional Asian textile design and costume.
Born in Japan, he moved to Paris in the 1960s. After initially seeking out a living by selling sketches to couture houses for 25 francs a piece, Takada opened a boutique in the 2nd arrondissement under the name Jungle Jap. His first collection was reportedly constructed out of $200 worth of fabrics bought at a discount house. As his designs gained popularity, and Takada began showing in New York, the Kenzo name was adopted, fearing Americans would take offence at the original moniker.
His use of cotton was also distinctive – initially used because it was cheap, it allowed him to develop the pleats and silhouettes he became recognised for.
His career was not an obvious choice he told the Financial Times in 2019: ‘Being creative was not accepted in Japanese society in the 1950s. And more than anything, my parents opposed the idea of me working in fashion.’
Art was also a major influence. ‘When I started, I had Henri Rousseau’s 1910 painting The Dream in mind’ he said, referring to the reoccurring florals in his creations.
In 1993, Bernard Arnault’s LVMH group bought the label and in 1999 Takada resigned as the brand’s creative director. Arnault paid tribute on Sunday. ‘Kenzo Takada has, from the 1970s, infused into fashion a tone of poetic lightness and sweet freedom which inspired many designers after him. In this fresh and spontaneous spirit, he also durably renewed the world of perfume.’
Earlier this year Takado launched K三, a homeware and lifestyle brand with Jonathan Bouchet Manheim, opening a store in Paris.
The city’s mayor, Anne Hidalgo, posted on Twitter: ‘Designer of immense talent, he had given colour and light their place in fashion. Paris is now mourning one of its sons.’
