If I remember correctly, she was an Eastern European gymnast, she won a gold medal in the women’s artistic individual all-around at the Olympics, and she became a national hero. But, at that time, the government in her country was experiencing serious social unrest and the party was conspicuously turning against it. The party saw her fame and strong sense of justice, and they set her up as one of their leaders. At first, the nation was favorably impressed by her actions and beliefs, but that reaction was gradually reversed. Before long, she was hearing the hisses of the people instead of basking in their cheers. Eventually, she suffered a complete loss of the praise and fame she won at the Olympics. Living in a year of violent change, looking back over the first half of her life, she said “ Life is like stepping on a balance beam that’s only ten centimeters wide….Then, the most important thing is balance.”

Of the four words written on the FERAL FLAIR label, I chose one of them, the word BALANCE, from being inspired by her story.

Once we got a letter from our customer which read, “FERAL FLAIR clothes are filled with many elements. They have an element of casualness or an element of elegance; sometimes they have a taste of the avant-garde or cuteness; other times they’re girly. Sometimes they’re ladylike. There are so many different tastes in your garments. ”

One of the reasons for that is that an ultimate style doesn’t exist for me and another is that I can find charm in every style and school. In other words, styles and schools in which I cannot find any charm or cannot help denying simply don’t exist.

Every style and school (religion too, to put it in the strongest terms), is no surprise. Each takes great pride in itself and this great pride may make them tend to not be interested in the others. I never say that it is evil, but I just hope that they are friendly, more than ever. They should have an attitude of understanding the charm of other styles.

We should not only share fellow feelings with those who have the same values as us; but sometimes we should have an attitude to understand and love different values

FF tries to find the charm in every style, to make it harmonious, to create beautiful and fascinating clothes and styles in its fusions; clothes in a new style that is fused with every style and school.

In terms of peace, in the future, after people are terminated in some race or a country gets swallowed up in a war, there will be no utopia. If a utopia really exists on the earth, it is only in a context in which different parties understand each other, even slightly, and the balance of each party is preserved. I cannot imagine anything but. If every day were sunny and on Sunday people felt peaceful and happy? Rainy days make us bless the sunny days and working on weekdays makes us bless Sundays.

In terms of food, certain foods are sometimes highlighted in the media as being beneficial for good health. But I wonder, is there any food that maintains our good health without having the need to eat any other food? I think that every kind of food has a reason for its existence and no food has no merit. (Of course, the contrary too). Some people say “this food has few nutrients” but I say, “ it just hasn’t been discovered yet.” Now, what food should we eat for ultimate health? I say, “we should eat all food in a well-balanced diet, and make our body move by enjoying some exercise and sports, not just work the brain.” I think many people have come to this conclusion, in fact.

In terms of happiness for women, when a woman is asked a question about looking back over the first half of her life, “Have you had a hard time in your life?” and she answers, “Well, I had a hard time, but at the same time, I didn’t have a hard time…” I believe that a life like hers is the happiest life for women.

The Japanese band BABYMETAL has fused elements of the destructive heavy metal sound with the essence of Japanese Kawaii and transcendent dance; which, stereotypically, had been thought to be incompatible.

The band has already experienced tremendous success and people might say that the reason for this success is their high quality performance and the novelty of this unusual fusion. But, when they performed at Tokyo Dome for the final show of their worldwide tour, 55,000 members of the audience were wildly excited, including me. At that moment, I was certain that the most important factor of their success is that they have created one of the most complete fusions by blending various elements with an overwhelming novelty and outstanding sense of balance.

Isshi KANAMARU 2016.10