all photos courtesy Tomo Koizumi
One of our favorite moments of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics opening ceremony was seeing and listening to Japanese singer-songwriter Misia perform Kimigayo, Japan’s national anthem. And while it was one of the best renditions we had ever heard, we also couldn’t take our eyes off of her scrumptious dress. Although it’s been dubbed the “cotton candy dress” by various western media outlets, in our book it’s the “kakigori dress”: Japanese shaved ice, and in every flavor.
The dress was designed by Tomo Koizumi, a 33-year old costume designer whose unorthodox career has made him a standout of the Olympics ceremony. He launched his own brand just 10 years ago after an editor of Vogue Italia posted an image of a dress the designer had created during university, on Instagram. The image caught the attention of several fashion elite, and the rest is history.
Below are several dresses from Tomo Koizumi’s latest: 2022 collection shown at Nijojo Castle in Kyoto.
