Yumi Katsura

Yumi Katsura is a Japanese fashion designer known for designing wedding dresses.[2][3] She has been active in the fashion industry for over five decades, and her work has been featured in various fashion shows and events. Katsura's designs are known for their unique blend of traditional Japanese techniques and French savoir-faire.[2][4]

Yumi Katsura
Born (1932-04-24) April 24, 1932
Tokyo, Japan[1]
NationalityJapanese
Occupation(s)fashion designer, bridal fashion
Notable workPope John Paul II’s Easter vestments, 1993 [2]
Websitewww.yumikatsuracouture.com

Education

Katsura was born in Tokyo in 1932.[1] Katsura studied fashion at Kyoritsu Women’s University.[5] After schooling, she taught at her mother's dressmaking school.[5] In 1960 she traveled to Paris to study at École de la chambre syndicale de la couture parisienne.[1][5]

Career

Katsura claimed to have created over 650,000 dresses over the course of her career.[6] She has also been credited with popularizing the “everyday” kimono in Japan and around the world after the garment began losing popularity in the 1980s.[5][7] She opened Japan's first bridal store in Akasaka, Tokyo, in December 1964.[5][6][8] She built her flagship store in Nogizaka about ten years later.[5] In her early days of designing, Katsura struggled with finding resources such as fabric, lace, and shoes for her designs.[9]

Katsura has named Pierre Balmain as one of her mentors and sources of inspiration.[1] The two first met when he visited one of her stores in 1975.[1] In 1981 Katsura participated in her first New York fashion show.[10] Later that decade, in 1987, she established the Yumi Katsura Bridal Museum in Kobe, whose collection includes traditional European wedding dresses collected by Katsura.[6][8][10] She opened boutiques in Paris and New York in 2005 and 2006 respectively.[6][8]

Yumi Katsura designed the Easter vestments worn by Pope John Paul II in 1993.[2]


In 2022, she designed a wedding gown using an ultra-fine silk from Fukushima, Japan. The dress used 55 meters of fabric but weighed only 600 grams. [11]

Exhibits

One of Katsura's dresses is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute.[12] In 2018 Katsura became the first designer to exhibit her work at the Akasaka Palace.[7][9]

Books

Katsura has published more than twenty books on bridal fashion.[9] However, her only book available in English is Yumi Katsura: Behind the Scenes, released in 2019.[9]

Awards

Katsura holds the Guinness World Record for most pearls on a wedding dress: 13,262.[5][13]

Personal life

Katsura chose to wear a green velvet dress, rather than a traditional white wedding dress, to her own wedding.[5]

References
  1. Billini, Gabriela (2017-07-08). "Interview with Yumi Katsura | Paris Fashion Week Exclusive". Fashion Week Online®. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  2. Bobb, Brooke (May 2, 2018). "This Is How Pope John Paul II's 1993 Easter Mass Vestment Was Made". Vogue. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  3. Times, The Japan (2023-07-29). "tag". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2023-07-28.
  4. euronews staff (July 11, 2018). "World couture in Paris". euronews.com. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  5. Hongo, Alexandra (17 April 2018). "Renowned bridal designer Yumi Katsura's walk down the aisle to international success". Japan Today. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  6. Tripathi, Anand (2017-11-08). "Yumi Katsura: Japanese Fashion Designer Extraordinaire". Love Happens Magazine. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  7. Janette, Misha (February 25, 2018). "Yumi Katsura's mission to popularize the everyday kimono". Japan Times. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  8. Fydrych, Eva (19 December 2012). "YUMI KATSURA: Exclusive Interview". Fashion Studio Magazine. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  9. Miller, Camille (2019-12-18). "Yumi Katsura: Behind the Scenes". Metropolis Japan. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  10. Ziminski, Alexandra (2020-02-05). "Iconic Japanese Wedding Dress Designer Yumi Katsura: Still Making Dreams Come True at 87 Years Old". Tokyo Weekender (in Japanese). Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  11. Direct Talk: Taking Fukushima Silk Global: Saito Eita / Managing Director, Saiei Silk (tv program). NHK World. March 23, 2022. Event occurs at 11:20. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  12. "Yumi Katsura International Co., Ltd. | Dress". metmuseum.org. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  13. "Most pearls on a wedding dress". Guinness World Records. February 21, 2012. Archived from the original on December 31, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
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