Ryoko Yamada

OMOCAT FALL 2016 ARTIST COLLABORATION is here!

For FALL 2016, I decided to change it up a bit. Instead of creating the artwork on my own, I asked 16 other artists or artist-owned brands to create their original spooky designs based off Halloween! Each artist got the option to choose based off a list of themes (witches, cats, vampires, ghosts, bugs, etc.) and the artist was free to draw whatever they wanted!! I am very humbled by the participation from each artist, being a fan of all of their work. It was a very fun process and super rewarding to see everyone’s work come to life.

LIST OF CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS: -Billies -Choo -Fangrrlz -Jane Mai -Kaela Camille -Kido -Ling Chou -Lottie Pencheon -MIQ -Maruti Bitamin -OMOCAT -Pepperonccini -Punimelt -QTMilk -Rem -Sachin Teng -Tokimekiwaku

Although this may just seem like a very fun project on the surface, it’s also the result of a few ideas that I would like to actively support.

I know of many young artists who shy away from creating original work simply because they are afraid people won’t care or that the work won’t sell. Especially at conventions, many artists specifically draw popular intellectual properties in order to sell their work. However, I believe that original work is the most precious and instead of just developing a personal style, I encourage young artists to use their creativity differently and harbor their original ideas as well. That being said, I wanted this project to be an example of a profitable venue that can showcase original work and which will hopefully encourage the idea of original content as well!!

I’m also a strong believer in freedom of expression and that both art and fashion are mediums to express oneself. Artists should be able to draw whatever they want, just as people should be able to wear whatever they want. although there are places where some art can be inappropriate, I am completely against telling an individual that they can’t draw something because it is wrong or may offend a group of people. during the initial halloween prompt, I was sure to give the artists freedom of their ideas, allowing them to take their design as far as they wanted it to go. When it comes to displaying art and ideas that are normally too extreme, I believe halloween is a season where that everyone can find a compromise.

Lastly, being both an artist and a business owner, I’ve been really distraught lately from seeing a lot of larger companies taking advantage of individual artists and their ideas. However, I believe there is a right way for companies to work with artists — namely paying them and giving them credit. As an artist myself, I believe it’s very important for artists to be paid fairly for their work. As such, each artist has received commission pay for their artwork and will receive royalties per garment sold for as long as their garment remains in OMOCAT SHOP.

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Kimono drawing guide ½, by Kaoruko Maya (tumblr, pixiv, site). Booklet is available in pdf for ¥ 900 here.

Here you can see:

female kimono and yukata (note how the juban underwear peeks when in kimono + how belts differ)

male yukata and kimono (note how the juban underwear peeks when in kimono)

dressing up: male (kimono is not closed yet) and female (kimono closed with datejime belt and ready to put on obi)

differences between female and male kimono once dressed (note how the collars and belts set)

common drawing mistakes (compare with previous picture: shoulders lines are too defined, there is a double hem, collars are narrow, belt is not at the right place etc)

women back collar (the lower the sexier) and men back collar (close to the nape)

back and sleeves differences between men and women

collars and sleeves and view of how kimono drapes around body