Issey Miyake Biography, Designs, Perfumes, & Facts

Issey Miyake was a Japanese fashion designer known for fusing Eastern and Western elements in his designs. Issey Miyake was born in Hiroshima, Japan on April 22, 1938.

Miyake studied graphic design at Tokyo’s Tama Art University before moving to Paris in 1965 to study tailoring and dressmaking at the renowned École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne.

He began his career in 1966, working for four years behind the scenes in the ateliers of three 20th-century fashion legends: French couturiers Guy Laroche and Hubert de Givenchy, as well as the meticulous American designer Geoffrey Beene.

Miyake debuted his independent collection in a Paris group fashion show in 1973, three years after establishing a Tokyo studio, and developed the layered and wrapped look that became his trademark.

Miyake was the first to challenge fashion norms. His clothing patterns were very different from Western styles in that he restructured the traditional garment construction.

Issey Miyake had a popular fragrance line, which included L’Eau d’Issey. Issey Miyake’s view of water as a material inspired the fragrance, which had a long-lasting impact on the perfume world.

Miyake was awarded the Praemium Imperiale by the Japan Arts Association in 2005 for outstanding achievement in the arts.