One of Japan’s most famous fashion designers, Junko Koshino has been designing her genre defining and visionary clothing ranges since the sixties. Born in city of Osaka in Japan in 1939, Koshino studied at the prestigious Bunka Fashion College, winning the 7th SO-EN award whilst a student there, graduating in 1961. This precocious start to her career was a sign of the success that was to follow.
Opening her first boutique called ‘COLLETTE’ in Tokyo in 1969, she followed this a year later by designing the uniforms at the 1970 EXPO held in Osaka, a World’s Fair whose theme was “Harmony and Progress for Mankind”. The seventies saw Koshino open further boutiques in Japan, but by 1978, she was ready to launch her first ready-to-wear collection at the Paris Fashion Week. The collection was well-received by critics, and this set the trend for her collections over the next few years.
Never one to rest on her laurels, Junko Koshino has never been afraid to branch out into other areas of fashion. 1980 saw Koshino launch her menswear brand, Mr Junko, and in 1988 she launched her home furnishings lines to much critical acclaim. Not that Koshino could ever be accused of spreading herself too thin, as well as these diverse lines, she has never lost focus on her women’s collections and her boutiques, of which she has all over the world, including Singapore, China, Paris and New York.
In an age where we associate innovation and experimentation with the young, Junko Koshino’s cutting-edge designs prove that age is irrelevant, and if one has the passion and talent to keep on innovating and experimenting, a long and successful career can be had.
Website: www.junkokoshino.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/koshino_junko
Facebook: www.facebook.com/junko.koshino.official
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