[Image courtesy of Miyako]
Welcome to the world of “ishoku-hada” (異色肌), which can mean “unique skin” or even “remarkable skin.” It’s inspired by the otherworldly characters who appear in anime, movies, and video games.
Note: Some images might be NSFW.
“For a while, I’ve been doing ishoku-hada cosplay,” Miyako (top photo), who works as a DJ and model, tells Kotaku.
[Image courtesy of Miyako]
[Image courtesy of Miyako]
[Image: mud_skii]
“I’ve longed for the interesting skin tones you see in video games, anime, and movies,” Miyako says.
女の子複数人で異色肌ギャルやりたいぽよ pic.twitter.com/ilTuqGmkpc
— miyako (@miyakocore) May 9, 2017
Miyako came up with the idea to do a ishoku-hada shoot with a bunch of friends at the American Bar & Cafe Ren in Tokyo’s Kabukicho. Each woman painted herself a different colour: orange, pink, grey, yellow, aqua, purple, etc. (Note that the black paint could inadvertently cause offence in the West because of the history of black face; however, that is not the intent here.)
[Image courtesy of Miyako]
“This shoot was really influenced by American comics, the Japanese artists Junko Mizuno, and Rockin’ Jelly Bean.
[Image courtesy of Miyako]
[Image courtesy of Miyako]
The look does appear reminiscent of “Yamanba” fashion of the early 2000s, which a style of dress and make-up in which heavily tanned Japanese women typically had pink and blonde hair, donned pastel and Hawaiian-inspired clothing, and wore panda style make-up. This is no accident, because Miyako says that fashion style is also an influence.
Ditto for video games, which are home to numerous ishoku-hada characters.
今日も異色肌に感謝 ありがとう!! pic.twitter.com/mEU74MT0ER
— ?**るびさん? (@kikuknkn) April 6, 2017
異色肌を肌色化の流れに遅れて乗ってみる。
お魚は皮剥いて下ろしたみたいだし、虫はメインをちっさくしただけになった。
つまりやはり異色肌は良い!! pic.twitter.com/Q5cebScTIU— KEI@7/15名古屋感謝祭参加 (@K_PSO2_07) May 30, 2017
異色肌軽音部 pic.twitter.com/m8q1mVQdRw
— ぴーぴー (@PP_Y_Bep) May 21, 2017
禍々異色肌(ノ’ω’) #メンテの日なのでssを貼る #異色肌アークス雑談 pic.twitter.com/JQpFMqa7gt
— あるっち@ship4 (@arutipso2) April 5, 2017
なんだこの素敵なタグは!?
皆さん!異色肌男性は、いいぞ。
#PSO2異色肌男性推進会 pic.twitter.com/N8xjXOxmmp— 日和 (@Hiyoriel) May 7, 2017
While Phantasy Star Online 2 seems to be especially well suited for ishoku-hada, these colourful characters have existed for a long time in anime. In recent years, the red-coloured demon character Scanty from the anime Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt has inspired cosplayers to cover their bodies in red paint. Hollywood movies and American comic books have done the same in the West. Avatar did it with blue paint, and before that, there were Marvel mutants like Mystique. In both parts of the world, there is a long tradition of colourful characters. Here, that tradition is now intersecting with fashion.
[Image courtesy of Miyako]
“This past Halloween, I did an in-store event where I dressed up like a devil, painting my whole body red,” says Miku, who was decked out in purple for the recent shoot. This time, covering herself in stage make-up took around three hours. “I needed help painting my back, though, because I couldn’t do that myself,” Miku says, chuckling.
[Images courtesy of Miyako]
While Miyako and her ishoku-hada crew are just now getting noticed online for their colourful creations, appearing on the Japanese version of The Huffington Post, don’t assume this is part of a mass Japanese fashion trend. It’s not. Even when there were yamanba wondering the streets of Tokyo and Osaka, that was never mainstream.
スタジオからの移動目立ちまくるから大変だったけど、楽しかった~
日本人?って言われたり、アバター言われたり
見た人たちの反応が面白かったw
楽しすぎて、笑いすぎ#むっちりさん #グラドル自画撮り部 #日本グラドル協会 #TeamABC #異色肌ギャル #新宿 #歌舞伎町 pic.twitter.com/ME2EvqAMMp— 須永ちえり@黄色ギャル (@cherry2_m) June 27, 2017
However, it became widely covered and promoted by Egg Magazine, a niche but influential fashion periodical that’s no longer in publication. The mainstream Japanese media also covered the Yamanba trend, and it’s starting to cover ishoku-hada, which could spawn imitators and actually turn this into a niche fashion.
#異色肌ギャル #FanArt お写真拝見して、あまりにもあまりにも衝撃的な可愛さだったので、興奮のまま勢いで勝手に描かせていただきました??何か問題があるようでしたら消しまーす!全員チョーカワイイ! pic.twitter.com/zTW9fv8q6A
— 沢井しっか? (@sawai_cicca) June 27, 2017
名前合ってるかな、ソノラマ子さん
すっごい魔女っぽさを感じて、跪くレベルで美しい・・・異色肌ギャルってカートゥンワールドから出てきたみたいでめっちゃ絵描きやすーーーい!!!#異色肌ギャル pic.twitter.com/xIXI8jf0On
— 新宿のR子 (@reirin0805) June 29, 2017
衝撃的で つい 描いてしまいましてん 粗いですが。(: ´-`).。oO#異色肌#異色肌ギャル pic.twitter.com/oVNdeB68FO
— サディスト冷冷 ファッション勢 (@SadistReirei) June 27, 2017
In the meantime, ishoku-hada is already inspiring fan art. “I enjoy transforming myself, so I think it would be great if ishoku-hada caught on,” says Miku. “I want to do it again, too,” says Sonorama, who was painted in orange for the shoot, while Cherry Sunaga, who was in yellow, says she’s keen to do ishoku-hada next time she’s dancing.
#異色肌ギャル で?歌舞伎町なう??✨ pic.twitter.com/zWI76qZD50
— 美紅は7月2日に撮影会 (@b_c_miku) June 27, 2017
Ishoku-hada hasn’t started a brand new subculture in Japan. Yet. This is, however, certainly a colourful start.
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