Graduated in 1992 at Central Saint Martin College in London, Japanese designer Tao Kurihara started his fashion career at Comme des Garçons in Tokyo under the wing of her mentor Rei Kawakubo, working, she says, “in an environment with 100 per cent free spirit”. In 2005 she debuted her own label, simply called Tao, gaining the attention of a selected and enthusiastic audience thanks to her feminine, delicate yet experimental designs. Despite her success, Kurihara decided to cease her label in 2001; now she is the crative director behind Tricot Comme des Garçons.