Yohji Yamamoto

Tokyo, Japan

Yohji Yamamoto has a distinct avant-garde aesthetic. Using fluid silhouettes, directional cuts and masterful tailoring to great effect, Yohji’s oeuvre stands the test of time. An expert pattern cutter, Yohji listens to the fabric. Leaning into monochromatic designs, he has built his body of work with an attention to texture and detail, from intricate deconstructions to the hidden flash of color in a coat lining. 

After a brief stint studying law, Yohji Yamamoto went to work for his mother, a dressmaker with a shop in Kabukicho in Tokyo. He learned from the sewing assistants and then enrolled at Bunkafukuso Gakuin Fashion College before launching his company in 1972. Yohji presented his first collection in Paris in 1981 and has been a creative force in the fashion world ever since.