Festival Girl: FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Style | Photographs by Shoichi Aoki

Monday, April 4, 2011

FRUiTS: Tokyo Street Style | Photographs by Shoichi Aoki

The Powerhouse Museum curated the exhibition FRUiTS: Tokyo street style - photographs by Shoichi Aoki, showcasing a vibrant and engaging collection of photographs taken in Tokyo between 1997 and 2002. The images capture a radical Japanese fashion subculture that has inspired fashion designers worldwide.

Photograph by Shoichi Aoki from
FRUiTS magazine no. 36, May 2000.

This exhibition presents a vibrant collection of photographs and clothing from the amazing world celebrated in Shoichi Aoki’s magazine FRUiTS. FRUiTS Tokyo street style is exhibited in the Asian Gallery, which is dedicated to a program of exhibitions about Asian cultures both historical and contemporary.

Photograph by Shoichi Aoki from
FRUiTS magazine no. 11, April 1998.

Shoichi Aoki is photographer, editor and publisher of FRUiTS. Shoichi Aoki believes that fashion is an important form of communication; he is interested in the ways people express themselves through dress, rather than the individual garments they wear.

Photograph by Shoichi Aoki from
FRUiTS magazine no. 12, May 1998

Some of the many styles seen in FRUiTS include punk, cyber and decora, in which simple garments are accessorised with toys and plastic jewellery that clink together to add an aural dimension to dress. Clothing inspired by cartoon characters like Sailor Moon are also popular. In the last couple of years 'elegant gothic Lolitas' have had a strong presence in Japan. This style takes Harajuku's doll-like 'Lolita' look into a harder world of black lace crinolines, corsets and bat-shaped handbags.

Photograph by Shoichi Aoki from FRUiTS magazine no. 7, December 1997.

Pink hair, kimono and platform shoes — discover fantastic fashion from the streets of Tokyo. Shoichi Aoki’s extraordinary photographs chronicle a ‘ fashion revolution in Tokyo ’s suburbs’ from the mid 1990s to now. They capture the colour and energy of a radical subculture which inspires fashion designers worldwide.