Totally TOKYO 4: Harajuku FUSShion
Welcome to Day 4 of Totally TOKYO here on DDOA! Today we look into Harajuku FUSShion. Yes, that queer fashion you are bound to fuss about when you see it vis-a-vis on the streets of trendy Harajuku.
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“Pretty in Pink”
Photography by Michael Wortman
Harajuku, Tokyo
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Short in height?
No problem, Harajuku has a plethora of shoes
guaranteed to make you
tall in style…
Photography by Michael Wortman
Harajuku, Tokyo
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Strange Style, indeed!
Photography by Michael Wortman
Harajuku, Tokyo
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I didnt know until I researched about Harajuku fashion that there are such well defined female fashion genres in the district. Below are the 7 popular female fashion subcultures in Harajuku as described by Neko-V on DEVIANT ART:
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| The 7 Popular Female Fashion Subcultures of Harajuku Image by Neko-V |
1. Lolita or ‘Loli’- mixing Victorian and Rococo fashion with other styles
2. Decora- sweet with vivid colours
3. Visual Kei– Japanese version of London’s Punk
4. Fairy Kei- pastel version of Decora
5. Kogal- based on Japanese high school uniforms & English college outfits
6. Cyberpunk- imported from Europe & USA, fluorescent colors
7. Elegant Gothic (Aristocrat- subculture developed by guitarist and fashion designer Mana
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Pink Papillon Superheroine (of sorts,i think!)
Photography by Michael Wortman
Harajuku, Tokyo
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“It may look like a fancy dress party on steroids to the outsider but the Harajuku style once a subculture, has attracted a lot of mainstream attention. In her 2004 song Harajuku Girls the stylish Gwen Stefani applauds their style and even incorporated four Harajuku styled dancers and performers into her videos and shows. Certain colours cause us to have psychological reactions when we see others wearing them…”Read more on The Fair Magazine “The Psychological Impact of Clothing,” Written by Edel Hughes
“Harajuku Girls” by Gwen Stefani
Wa mono – there’s me, there’s you (hoko-ten)
In a pedestrian paradise
Where the catwalk got its claws (meow)
A subculture in a kaleidoscope of fashion
Prowl the streets of Harajuku (irasshaimase)
Super lovers, tell me where you got yours
(at the super lovers store)
Yoji Yamamoto, I’m hanging with the locals
Where the catwalk got its claws, all you fashion know-it-alls
With your underground malls in the world of Harajuku
Putting on a show, when you dress up in your clothes
Wild hair color and cell phones
Your accessories are dead on
Harajuku Girls you got the wicked style
I like the way that you are, I am your biggest fan
Harajuku Girls you got the wicked style
I like the way that you are, I am your biggest fan
Harajuku girls, I’m looking at you girls
You’re so original girls
You got the look that makes you stand out
Harajuku Girls, I’m looking at you girls
You mix and match it girls
You dress so fly and just parade around (arigato)
I’m fascinated by the Japanese fashion scene
Just an American girl, in the Tokyo streets
My boyfriend bought me a Hysteric Glamour shirt
They’re hard to find in the states, got me feeling couture (it’s really cool)
What’s that you got on? Is it Comme des Garcons?
Vivienne Westwood can’t go wrong, mixed up with second hand clothes
(Let’s not forget about John Galliano) (no)
Flipped the landscape when Nigo made A Bathing Ape
I got expensive taste (oh, well) guess I better save up (cho takai)
Harajuku Girls you got the wicked style
I like the way that you are, I am your biggest fan
Work it, express it, live it, command your style
Create it, design it
Now let me see you work it
Create it, design it
Now let me see you work it
You bring style and color all around the world. (You Harajuku Girls)
You bring style and color all around the world. (You Harajuku Girls)
You’re looking so distinctive like D.N.A., like nothing I’ve ever seen in the U.S.A.
Your underground culture, visual grammar
The language of your clothing is something to encounter
A Ping-Pong match between eastern and western
Did you see your inspiration in my latest collection?
Just wait ’til you get your little hands on L.A.M.B.,
‘Cause it’s (super kawaii), that means (super cute in Japanese)
The streets of Harajuku are your catwalk (bishoujo you’re so vogue)
That’s what you drop
Cho saikou – Harajuku Girls
And that’s what you drop, that’s what you drop
Cho saikou – Harajuku Girls
And that’s what you drop, that’s what you drop
(I don’t think you understand I’m your biggest fan)
(Gwen Stefani – you like me?)
Style detached from content
A fatal attraction to cuteness
Style is style
Fashion is fashion
Girl, you got style.
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Read more about Gwen Stefani’s ‘Harajuku Girls’ on Wikipedia
Read more about the shopping & entertainment district of HARAJUKU on Japan Guide
See more Harajuku fashion on Tokyo Fashion
Read about “Japanese fashion as social resistance” on Wikipedia
DAILY DOSE OF ART 
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