Japanese Fashion Designer Issey Miyake Dead At 84

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Issey Miyake, the famed Japanese fashion designer who founded clothing designs, perfumes, and more, has died. Miyake and his innovative style took hold in the 1980s before he stepped away from his daily design duties in the late 1990s.

Issey Miyake was born on April 22, 1938, in Hiroshima, Japan. Miyake studied Graphic Design at the Tama Art University in Japan, graduating in 1964. He then traveled to Paris to study at the École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne school where he worked as an understudy under the likes of Guy Laroche and Hubert de Givenchy.

Miyake later traveled to New York and immersed himself art and fashion scene while learning English at Columbia University. He then returned to his native Japan to establish the Miyake Design Studio. It was Miyake’s forward-thinking design of pleats that made him a star in the fashion world. Miyake also had a foothold in the world of fragrance, and the 1992 launch of the L’Eau d’Issey perfume was one of his more popular releases. The late Steve Jobs, known for his signature turtlenecks, went to Miyake to have the article of clothing designed beginning in the 1980s.

In the late 1990s, Miyake stepped away from his daily duties but still remained involved in his sprawling design operation at varying levels. Among the awards and recognition he received over the years, Miyake was awarded the Praemium Imperiale for Sculpture in 2005. In 2016, France presented Miyake with the Legion of Honor award.

Issey Miyake was 84.

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