DESIGNERS from Japan

Top 5

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Japanese Designers of all time. This list of famous Japanese Designers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

1. Eiko Ishioka (1938 - 2012)

With an HPI of 53.29, Eiko Ishioka is the most famous Japanese Designer.  Her biography has been translated into 20 different languages on wikipedia.

Eiko Ishioka (石岡 瑛子, Ishioka Eiko, July 12, 1938 – January 21, 2012) was a Japanese art director, costume designer, and graphic designer known for her work in stage, screen, advertising, and print media. Noted for her advertising campaigns for the Japanese boutique chain Parco, she collaborated with sportswear company Descente in designing uniforms and outerwear for members of the Swiss, Canadian, Japanese, and Spanish teams at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and was the director of costume design for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. She won the Academy Award for Best Costume Design for her work in Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 romantic-horror film Bram Stoker's Dracula, which was based on Bram Stoker's 1897 novel, and received a posthumous nomination in the same category for her work in Tarsem Singh's 2012 fantasy comedy film Mirror Mirror.

2. Yuko Shimizu (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 50.99, Yuko Shimizu is the 2nd most famous Japanese Designer.  Her biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Yuko Shimizu (清水 侑子, Shimizu Yūko, born 1 November 1946) is the Japanese designer who created Hello Kitty. She was born in Japan. After graduating from Musashino Art University, she joined Sanrio. She designed the first original Sanrio character, Coro Chan, a bear which was introduced in 1973. In 1974 she made the original design for Hello Kitty, Sanrio's most successful and best known character. She left Sanrio in 1976 to get married and has been working as a freelance designer ever since. She did not make a lot of money from Hello Kitty. The other characters she has created include Angel Cat Sugar and Rebecca Bonbon. She has also published some picture books.

3. Fumito Ueda (b. 1970)

With an HPI of 43.95, Fumito Ueda is the 3rd most famous Japanese Designer.  Her biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Fumito Ueda (上田 文人, Ueda Fumito, born April 19, 1970) is a Japanese video game designer. Ueda is best known as the director and lead designer of Ico (2001) and Shadow of the Colossus (2005) while leading Team Ico at Japan Studio, and The Last Guardian (2016) through his own development company GenDesign. His games have achieved cult status and are distinguished by their usage of minimal plot and scenario using fictional languages, and use of overexposed, desaturated light. He has been described by some as an auteur of video games.

4. Yusaku Maezawa (b. 1975)

With an HPI of 43.56, Yusaku Maezawa is the 4th most famous Japanese Designer.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Yusaku Maezawa (前澤 友作, Maezawa Yūsaku, born 22 November 1975) is a Japanese billionaire entrepreneur and art collector. He founded Start Today in 1998 and launched the online fashion retail website Zozotown in 2004, now Japan's largest. Maezawa introduced a custom-fit apparel brand Zozo and at-home measurement system, the Zozosuit, in 2018. As of December 2021, he was estimated by Forbes to have a net worth of $2.0 billion.

5. Nicola Formichetti (b. 1977)

With an HPI of 32.83, Nicola Formichetti is the 5th most famous Japanese Designer.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Nicola Formichetti (Italian pronunciation: [niˈkɔːla formiˈketti]; born 31 May 1977) is a fashion director and fashion editor. Born in Japan, he is most widely known as the artistic director of the Italian fashion label Diesel and for being a frequent collaborator with singer-songwriter Lady Gaga. He worked two years (September 2010 – April 2013) with the French fashion house Mugler as artistic director. Formichetti is also known as fashion director of Vogue Hommes Japan, is a contributing editor of several other fashion magazines and is fashion director for the clothing company Uniqlo. In November 2010 he was named one of the "most influential creative forces working in fashion today". The following month he was awarded the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator at the 2010 British Fashion Awards.