Fashion designer Jun Ashida, who passed away on Oct. 20 aged 88, created tasteful, comfortable and elegant garments and was a leader in Japanese pret-a-porter clothing for over a half century. His memorial service was held Friday at the Imperial Hotel.
Ashida achieved worldwide recognition for his truly personal style, characterized by "a subtle mix of Japanese balance and taste with European flavor and inspiration," according to Christian Lacroix in an email sent to The Yomiuri Shimbun. As a fledgling designer, Lacroix worked under Ashida for about a decade and visited Japan twice a year. Ashida "was the very first designer giving me the opportunity of working with famous deluxe fabric couture supplier from Europe," the renowned French designer recalled.
Lacroix said he was impressed by Ashida's "love for culture from worldwide, his sensitivity and taste for art." For the designer, Ashida's death was "one of the saddest news."
"Ashida's clothes had style, and he has done many good works," Japanese designer Hanae Mori added. Mori and Ashida had much in common, such as launching fashion shows in Paris in the 1970s and designing official uniforms for a Japanese airline company and Japanese delegations to the Olympics.
"During the days when Japanese designers faced high hurdles in advancing overseas, Ashida also worked with a view to building a new era. Cherishing and growing what he left will be a gift to Ashida," Mori said.
Ashida was inspired to become a fashion designer by illustrator Junichi Nakahara. Designer Hiroko Koshino, who was also influenced by Nakahara's works, said, "Although his style is different from mine, Ashida is my senior who created an era."
His unassuming personality appealed to others. "When I first met him, he told me, 'Throw your filthy clothes away,' making me realize the importance of taking care of one's appearance as a gentleman," actor Takuro Tatsumi recalled. "He is one of my masters in life."
Newscaster Masaaki Horio was also close to Ashida. "He was like a young boy as he was honest with his own feelings. He used to watch TV and graciously checked my ties. I was very thankful for that," she said.
Model Ai Tominaga appeared in Ashida's shows a number of times. "When I was a teenager, he kindly told me, 'Walk the way you want to walk,'" Tominaga recalled. "I felt his uncompromising attitude toward creation when I saw him examine the lengths of hems of wedding dresses over and over."
On Oct. 16, Tominaga attended a fashion show featuring designs by Ashida's second daughter Tae Ashida. "I felt Jun-san's philosophy has been properly inherited," she said.
The next generation will carry on his desire to make women look more beautiful and create clothes women want to wear for many years.
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