TOKYO ― “It was like I was being advised to retire,” internationally famed fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto said when asked how he felt after being informed he would receive France’s highest cultural decoration.

The remark fits Yamamoto’s image of a “rebel designer,” a nickname earned after a sensational debut at Paris Fashion Week in 1981.

Up to then, the dominant fashion was a gorgeous lineup of clothes that emphasized the shape of a woman’s body.

Yamamoto, however, rocked the fashion world by having his models wear oversized black clothes, some partly frayed. His “rebellion” against Western designs became a constant source of discussion.

Thirty years on, the so-called master of black is praised for his avant-garde creations, which have had a major impact on the world of fashion.

Retrospective exhibitions about him and his fashion are frequently held at museums around the world.

Earlier this year, the French government announced it would award Yamamoto the Commandeur dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters).

Yamamoto lost his father in the Pacific War when he was small, and he was raised by his mother, who had to work her fingers to the bone.

After graduating from university, he was unsure what he wanted to do with his life. So he decided to help his mother, who was running a shop selling Western-style clothes in Tokyo.

During this time, he thought he would like to make clothes for independent working women.

His 95-year-old mother still accompanies him during Paris Fashion Week to see her son’s latest creations.

“I’m not the type of person who normally receives a decoration, but the award will be good for my mother,” Yamamoto said showing how much he appreciates her.

The decoration will be awarded to him after he shows his new Paris collection in October.

By Yoko Tanimoto, The Yomiuri Shimbun

(McClatchy-Tribune Information Services)