By Warren Feng
On Sunday, October 4th, 2020, Kenzo Takada, an 81 year old fashion designer who was suffering from Covid 19, died in a French hospital.
Kenzo Takada was a renowned Japanese fashion designer who was known for his vivid prints, prints that brought new fashion to the world. However, at age 81, he died in France. As a child living in Himeji, Japan, he found his sister's fashion magazine, which highly intrigued him in the art of fashion. Takada later dropped out of Kobe University, giving up his study in literature to attend the Bunka Fashion College. He later travelled to France, where he would live for over two thirds of his life.
In France, he opened his first store in 1970. He understood that he couldn’t follow other French designers. Takada has said that he “did things his own way in order to be different,” and that he “used kimono fabrics and other influences.” His fashion shows were playful, lighthearted, and were even described as “legendary, and the toughest ticket in town,” by Gene Pressman, former co-chief executive of Barneys.
Although Takada was popular in the fashion industry, he decided to step away from fashion, mainly due to his struggles in business. He sold his company for about $80,000,000. Kenzo Takada’s death has affected many people. Many people agreed that he was a man full of energy and that they enjoyed his work. Although Kenzo Takada has died, his legacy lives on, his company is continuing work under the hands of many other designers, all of which plan to bring back Takada’s magnificent work.
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