MOSCOW, April 23 (RIA Novosti) – Six models of shoes were created by London-based Malaysian designer Jimmy Choo using the famous Kawamata silk from the disaster-hit Fukushima area, Japan Daily Press reported Wednesday.
“They use their own material to create this beautiful fabric. These people, they know how to weave the fabric [but] they don’t know how important [it is] to let the whole world enjoy the craftsmanship, enjoy beautiful fabric,” Choo was quoted as saying.
A famous luxury footwear designer, among whose clients are Michelle Obama and Madonna, decided to use Kawamata silk, known to be the thinnest in the world, in his new collection together with Aizu cotton and lacquerware from Fukushima workshops.
According to Choo, he wants to support Japanese craftsmen who suffered from Fukushima disaster by donating his collection to local organizations, where it will be displayed.
“If you give money to them, money [will run out], but passing on the skill, the skill will remain. They can start their own businesses, they can acquire people, they can start a factory, bringing the economy back to the city,” designer said.
In March 2011, Japan was hit by a massive magnitude 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami, claiming more than 15,000 lives and causing a number of explosions at the Fukushima nuclear plant. In what has been dubbed the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl, three of the plant’s reactors underwent a partial meltdown as radiation leaked into the atmosphere, soil and seawater.
