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BA: We are in your studio in the Setagaya neighbourhood, in Tokyo. Did you grow up here?

YK: I’m actually from Kyoto, where I also did my first Bachelor’s in the Faculty of Literature. After I graduated though, I moved to London to study fashion design at Central Saint Martins. Then when I finished that second degree, I moved back to Japan and chose to live in Tokyo.

BA: What is it like studying in Japan?

YK: Studying aesthetics, my professors talked a lot about the meaning of beauty. My program had a focus on Western art, and I found it all interesting although I really chose to pursue this degree to please my parents as they wanted me to graduate from a ‘regular’ university. I always wanted to study fashion, but my mother didn’t accept for me to do it initially at the time.

BA: And what does beauty mean?

YK: I believe beauty is the radiance that exists within finiteness. In the past, people used beauty to express objects of faith. However, since the rise of modern art, artists have created works with a stronger focus on beauty itself. Gradually, artworks became objects of reverence and in modern-day society this has become closely tied to monetary value; I believe truly great artists are those who can capture light.

BA: What did your parents do?

YK: Both of my parents worked in garment-making. My mother was a lingerie designer, and before passing away my father had a company making classic Japanese costumes for Nihon-buyō dance, a form of classical Japanese dancing. The company has been in our family for generations, so fashion was almost passed down to me. Unfortunately, Nihon-buyō is an art form that fewer and fewer people are practicing, so the company has sadly gotten smaller over the years.

BA: Did you spend a lot of time at your father’s company while you were growing up?

YK: Yes, before my father passed away I used to spend a lot of time there. It wasn’t such a surprise to me that I wasn’t passionate about it at the time as it felt too laborious. There was so much work to it — all I wanted to do was to read and paint.

BA: So, what drew you to garment making?

YK: My mother quit her job when I was a child so she could take care of me. But she continued to do embroidery and patchwork every day. Although she never taught me the craft, by looking at her, I was first introduced to garment-making as a passion and not simply work. But my grandmother was the one who later showed me how to sew and embroider.

BA: Do you remember the moment that sparked your interest in fashion?

YK: My mother bought so many clothes for herself and me. We always went shopping together. Usually, kids hate going shopping with their parents, but I really enjoyed it. My mom always had great taste. She likes brands like Comme des Garçons, Prada and Hermès. She knew how to spend her money on quality garments. As a kid, she liked to dress me in an all preppy look; in my childhood I wore brands like Abercrombie & Fitch, Ralph Lauren and Diesel.

BA: You mentioned your interest in reading and painting as a kid. When did that first start?

YK: I didn’t have many friends, so I found creative outlets to pass my time. I don’t remember when it started, but as far as I remember I had either a book or a brush in my hand. I wasn’t the best student at school but creativity always was my strong suit — I painted and read books daily.

BA: What kind of books did you use to read?

YK: All kinds of books! I used to go to the library and stay there the whole day going through art and history books. I remember being fascinated by the French-American artist Niki de Saint Phalle, admiring how grand her work was.

BA: Were you more interested in Western culture than Japanese culture as a kid?

YK: Japanese society is very strict and I found less inspiration there. As a kid I was surrounded by heritage costumes and lived in a very Japanese household with a lot of rules. Western culture represented the opposite to me. Niki de Saint Phalle’s work for example, is colourful and expressive, embracing the weird asymmetrical shapes — I found freedom in it.

BA: What did your mother think about your fashion degree?

YK: My mom was very happy and open about it. Fashion itself wasn’t the issue; she was more concerned that I didn’t follow a typical Japanese way to look for a job right after graduating from university, but she knew I wanted to pursue fashion.

BA: Does your mother ever wear your clothes?

YK: Yes, she does. She often says they are too tight. [Laughs.]

BA: Looking around your studio, you have an impressive book collection. Why did you start collecting them?

YK: My connection to books was established at a young age and it has never stopped. I like all kinds of books: art, painting, manga and zines; some of my collection is from when I was in London where I discovered so many magazines and old books, but 80 per cent of the books you see I bought in Japan. For example, this zine I’m holding was created by my Korean friend, Lee Haesun, who is an illustrator and a tattoo artist.

BA: Have you made your own zine?

YK: I actually make one every season with each collection. But I never keep them; I give it away to my friends and move on to the next.

BA: Show me your graduation collection; it’s this zine here, right? Do you feel like there’s a connection with your work in the images and what you’re doing today?

YK: There is a strong link in my colour choices and the themes I explore. Since this collection, I’ve always picked a theme for each season. For this graduation collection, the theme was the S.I. Hiroshima atomic bomb.

BA: You are drawn to serious or sad themes, I find. Like your recent collection at Tokyo Fashion week, where the story of Orfeo and Eurydice was the inspiration. Why do you think you choose such themes?

YK: I find beauty in sadness because it’s an emotion that is ever-present for everyone; I feel sadness every day. But when I face those heavy emotions through my collection, life feels a little lighter, and the garment-making practice itself becomes meditative.

BA: Are there films that explore sadness you enjoy?

YK: Movies like Past Lives by Celine Song or Aftersun by Charlotte Wells are emotionally complex.

BA: Beautiful. What would you say is your creative process if it starts here?

YK: I start by finding an abstract theme, and then I source a fictional work like a movie or a novel that connects with it. Like when I started this graduation collection, I was inspired by a manga called In This Corner of the World. That manga is set in Hiroshima and depicts everyday life before the atomic bomb and then the aftermath of it. Although thinking about it now, for my next Spring Summer 2027 collection I want to take a happier theme like the ocean; I want to make swimwear, too.

BA: Do you collect any other things other than books?

YK: Yes! I have a collection of my favourite Sanrio characters. I love Hello Kitty, My Melody and Kuromi. I’ve been obsessed with them since I was a kid. Very kawaii.

BA: What does kawaii mean to you?

YK: Kawaii has two sides: on one hand, it’s colourful and cute, and on the other hand, it’s ugly or scary. I always saw Hello Kitty as an adorable character, but if it’s blown up out of proportion like a huge exaggerated Hello Kitty doll, it can be so scary. This over-the-topness is the type of kawaii that intrigues me.

BA: For the film SEAM, which you created for your Autumn Winter 2024 collection, was there also this kind of duality?

YK: Aesthetically, the movie is very kawaii, but it also carries an unsettling undertone throughout. I draw inspiration from the creepiness or sadness found in films like Nobuhiko Obayashi’s House and Michel Gondry’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

BA: Do you enjoy happy things?

YK: I like Japanese reality shows like Terrace House and The Boyfriend. They are so calming I could watch them forever.

BA: I see some idol images here. Would you say you like them?

YK: I like Fruits Zipper. I actually made kimono-style costumes for them recently. I like K-pop idols too, my favourite is Illit, for whom I also made costumes. I find it very interesting how pop stars need to have a perfect front for their audience, but they are just humans; I find a sense of horror in the contrast between the bright surface and the darker reality that lies underneath.

BA: How do you work when you collaborate with other people like these K- and J-pop groups?

YK: It depends on the client. For Illit, the stylist contacted us and asked us to make some garments for them, so I had a lot of creative freedom. For the Japanese idols, they sent me a specific concept, and I built the design. NewJeans wore my clothes too, which was so exciting!

The interview with Yusho Kobayashi took place at his atelier after he presented his Autumn Winter 2026 collection during Rakuten Fashion Week Tokyo.