Some of these items have been reproduced, but most have not and are still coveted items to this day.īut what made these items so desirable? Why was URAHARA so revolutionary? The answers it seems stem from many different, yet surprisingly realistic sources. Teens and 20-somethings were chasing item after item, with some “grails” gaining the most attention such as HYSTERIC GLAMOUR’s image tees and rock accessories, NEIGHBORHOOD’s Savage denim, Goro’s Native American-sourced jewelry, and of course anything donning the famed BAPE camo along with the legendary Hero down-filled leather jacket made famous by actor/pop singer Kimura Takuya. Once momentum picked up with the help of Japanese media magazines like smart and ASAYAN, the hype kicked in. The area was booming, and the fans were sampling all Urahara had to offer. A perpetual waterfall of styles and statements all with their own unique flavor and message began to flow onto the streets, and the kids loved it. The creativity simply could not be stopped, with brands like Goro’s, WTAPS, visvim, HECTIC also popping up. Creative designer SK8THING was mixed into the scene as well, providing mind-blowing graphic designs for A Bathing Ape, punk/toy brand BOUNTY HUNTER and many more. Rocker-slash-designer Nobuhiko Kitamura soon after opened HYSTERIC GLAMOUR, a brand devoted to fans of ’70s rock bands and films you’d find of the grindhouse/Russ Meyer variety. Shinsuke’s designs were at the time very radical, referencing motorcycle and heavy metal Americana – something the Japanese youth crowd had very little experience with. Shinsuke Takizawa’s passion for Americana and a “rebel”-like way of thinking lead to the start of NEIGHBORHOOD, a brand named after his affiliation and respect towards the physical “neighborhood” of Urahara. It wasn’t long before more shops like NOWHERE or the official A Bathing Ape storefront Busy Work Shop began to pop up. The shop space was split in two, and NIGO’s half was dedicated primarily to the production of graphic T-shirts – this was the very beginning of A Bathing Ape, whom many argue is the essence and beginning of Urahara. This was the mentality at the time when, shortly before the internet, people knew about the shop from word-of-mouth and recommendation alone. Their shop, simply called NOWHERE, was just that – a boutique that was to be so vaguely named and positioned in a way most would walk right passed it. The youth soaked up everything like a sponge, and every new piece they bought helped disseminate it across their peers in schools, on the streets, and at the hangout spots until eventually the brands became the topic of strong word-of-mouth advertising, with kids all across Tokyo asking where they found each others T-shirts or accessories.įrom A Store Robot and Vintage King came another shop run by two unknowns at the time named Jun “ Jonio” Takahashi, and Tomoaki Nagao, known then and still to this day as NIGO. These shops gave birth to a fresh take on foreign cultures and ideals with just enough content to spark further creativity. Many say shops like A Store Robot or Vintage King were the definitive origins of the Urahara cultural movement. This ultimately brought an influx of new ideas and creativity that Japan had never yet seen but were frankly itching for. Some shops took inspiration from the West, pulling their newfound interest from America or the UK and importing the sportswear they found from subcultures of hip-hop and punk. In the mid-’90s the streets were lined with unknown and often unnamed boutiques all with a distinct flavor. Urahara, short for ura-Harajuku, literally means “the hidden Harajuku” - an area of approximately four square blocks between the districts of Harajuku and Aoyama which housed the true beginnings of modern day Japanese streetwear.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |