A former medical student, who completed her studies and worked in a laboratory in Japan, she switched to a career in fashion design after her father, filmmaker Ryuji Fukuyama, hired her to work with the costume department for his films. Her cinematic experience still informs how she thinks about fashion, as she views clothes as a way to enhance and communicate a person’s character and personality. Resplendent with color, her gowns, coats, and rompers often include a bit of bright gold. A few years back the Nob Hill Gazette referred to Uehara’s collection as ‘painterly’ and one of a kind, recognizable on the street. She’s no stranger to artistic experimentation. Currently, she’s embarked on a project known as Hagoromo, named for a mythical robe that allowed celestial beings to travel between the physical and spiritual realm. This will involve taking twelve traditionally crafted kimonos from different parts of Japan and modifying and painting them with the intent to comment on the ephemeral nature of the moment as well as form new art. Uehara educates us on traditional kimono-making techniques. “The vintage kimonos I am working with include those made with Kyo Yuzen, Yuki Tsumugi, Ushikubi Tsumugi, and Oshima tsumugi techniques. Yuzen is created with a resistance dyeing technique using rice paper. Yuki tsumugi uses Jibata or floor weaving. It is a technique that involves a tedious process of manually tying thousands of resists before the yarn is dyed based on the desired pattern or design.”
She’s self- taught, crafting kimonos with traditional techniques and all of her clothing with fabrics from
all around the world
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