TOKYO -- The Japanese bridal fashion brand Yumi Katsura held a major show at the prestigious Imperial Hotel Tokyo in August, displaying 100 white and colored dresses, accompanied by flowers and watched by celebrities. The festive atmosphere was perfect for the runway, but the show was actually a memorial for the brand's eponymous founder.
Respecting Katsura's clearly expressed wish: "I don't want a funeral, I want a show instead," the event chronicled the career of the designer who opened Japan's first bridal specialty shop in 1965, when almost all the country's brides wore traditional kimonos. She died in April, aged 94.
