Harajuku
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Harajuku (原宿 "meadow lodging") listen is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan. The area is known internationally for its youth style and fashion.[citation needed] Harajuku street style is promoted in Japanese and international publications such as Fruits.
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[edit] Location
Harajuku is an area between Shinjuku and Shibuya. Local landmarks include the headquarters of NHK, Meiji Shrine, and Yoyogi Park.
The area has two main shopping streets, Omotesandō and Takeshita Street (Takeshita-dōri). The latter caters to youth fashions and has many small stores selling Gothic Lolita, visual kei, rockabilly, hip-hop, and punk outfits,[1] in addition to fast food outlets and so forth.
In recent years Omotesandō has seen a rise in branches of expensive fashion stores such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Prada. The avenue is sometimes referred to as "Tokyo's Champs-Élysées".[2] Until 2004, one side of the avenue was occupied by the Dōjunkai Aoyama apāto, Bauhaus-inspired apartments built in 1927 after the 1923 Kantō earthquake. In 2006 the buildings were controversially destroyed by Mori Building and replaced with the "Omotesando Hills"[3] shopping mall, designed by Tadao Ando.[4] The area known as "Ura-Hara" (back streets of Harajuku) is a center of Japanese fashion for younger people — brands such as A Bathing Ape and Undercover have shops in the area.[5]
[edit] Subcultures
The term "Harajuku Girls" has been used by English-language media to describe teenagers dressed in any fashion style who are in the area of Harajuku.[6] These girls may be members of various sub-cultures including Gothic Lolita, Ganguro, Gyaru, and Kogal. They may also be dressed as characters from an anime, movie, or manga (known as cosplay).
In the 1980s large numbers of street performers and wildly dressed teens including takenoko-zoku (竹の子族, "bamboo-shoot kids") gathered on Omotesandō and the street that passes through Yoyogi Park on Sundays when the streets were closed to traffic. The streets were reopened to traffic in the 90s, and a great number of teens stopped gathering there. Today there are still teenagers hanging out in Harajuku, mostly on the bridge across the train tracks from Harajuku station to Yoyogi Park.
Visual kei is associated with Harajuku. In attendance one will find Visual kei cosplayers (those dressed as their favorite bands) and those in the Gothic Lolita subculture/fashion.[7]
[edit] See also
- Amerikamura in Osaka
- Dōtonbori in Osaka
- Harajuku Girls (a dance entourage associated with Gwen Stefani)
[edit] References
- ^ Face to face with Harajuku. Metropolis (December 1999). Retrieved on 2007-07-16.
- ^ Attention Avid Shoppers: A High-End Complex Opens Its Doors. The New York Times (February 15, 2005). Retrieved on 2007-03-11.
- ^ Omotesando Hills Project Page. Mori Building (January 19, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-07-16.
- ^ The view from the Hills: Minoru Mori defends the Omotesando Hills development and reveals big plans for Tokyo. Metropolis (February 3, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-07-16.
- ^ Behind the Scene. Metropolis (January 19, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-07-26.
- ^ Knight, Magda Harajuku Girls - The Heart of Modern Japanese Fashion Retrieved September 10, 2007
- ^ fashionlines.com e-magazine, January, 2007
[edit] Further reading
- Suzuki, Chako Pretty Babies: Japan's Undying Gothic Lolita Phenomenon fashionlines.com
[edit] External links
- Tokyo/Harajuku travel guide from Wikitravel
- Harajuku Photos and Guide
- Harajuku Photo Gallery and Travel Guide
- www.harajukustyle.net Harajuku Subculture and Fashion Information.
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