Fruits (magazine)
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| Fruits | |
|---|---|
Cover of issue 95. |
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| Categories | Harajuku fashion |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| Publisher | Shoichi Aoki |
| First issue | 1997 |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Website | Official site |
Fruits (written "FRUiTS") is a Japanese fashion magazine covering the fashions of the Harajuku district of Tokyo, established in 1997 by photographer Shoichi Aoki. Excerpts from the magazine were compiled to create the Phaidon Press books Fruits (2001) and Fresh Fruits (2005).
An exhibition of Aoki's photographs for the magazine, developed by the Powerhouse Museum, has toured museums in Australia and New Zealand.[1][2]
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[edit] Themes
The photographs document the individualistic styles young people wear around the Harajuku district of Tokyo. If there are identifiable themes, they can broadly be described as fun, original, authentic, and the recording of emerging social trends and technology. The message seems to shout through the repetitive format of these photos; a modern person head to toe in the foreground against an urban backdrop: "You are the best stylist to express yourself".
[edit] Fashion coverage
The homegrown Japanese fashion covered by Fruits is similar to most modern global street fashions. The look of the fashion in this magazine is eclectic and diverse, making it hard to categorize this magazine to a specific genre. That said, the "Fruits look" could be summarized as combining traditional Japanese styles of dress with an irreverent approach to modifying and combining elements of clothing, accessories, and technology.
Decora, also known as "Decoration" or "Decora-chan", is one of many street fashions showcased by the magazine. It consists of colorful clothing and accessories from head to toe. The style is sometimes mistakenly called "Fruits-style" by people outside of Japan.[citation needed] Decora clothing is simple, and the accessories include plastic toys and jewelry, which click together and make noise as the wearer moves.[1][3]
[edit] Compared to other styles
The fashion styles showcased in Fruits have a parallel concerning the disregard to conventions that punk takes to the extreme. However, unlike the punk movement, there is less, if any, of a political agenda expressed by "Fruits."
Fruits photographs styles which are distinct from Cosplay, which is a hobby where people dress like their favourite manga, anime, or video-game character.
[edit] Inside a copy of Fruits
The inside contains very few ads, most of which are to advertise a shop in Harajuku. The pictures take up the entire page, except for a white bar at the bottom which breaks down the person's outfit piece by piece to tell the reader where it was purchased (or in some cases, who made it), explains the "point of fashion" of the outfit (the main focal point of the ensemble), and gives a brief description of the person's age, social position, and interests. The back may include an interview with a staff member at the magazine. The very back shows reader-submitted pictures.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Fruits: Tokyo street style - photographs by Shoichi Aoki. Powerhouse Museum. Retrieved on 2007-01-20.
- ^ Levermore, Elizabeth. "Fashion and fiord mix it up in exhibit", The Southland Times, January 20, 2006, pp. 15.
- ^ Dibble, Fran. "Barbie Meets Punk", Manuwatu Standard, March 19, 2004, pp. 16.
