Photography and styling: Eléonor Delécluse

Model: Kade

Location: Kyoto

Date: April 2025

Through Eléonor's eyes, I discovered new color palettes on the other side of the world.

Kyoto, a city I've never set foot in, but one I now miss.

There's something about these images that feels like a shared sense of nostalgia.

The pieces from Estudio 1999 with the colors of the streets, and Eléonor’s text takes you to that intimate, faraway place.

I felt like sharing this with you all.

I.L. 🪽

Corset Top and Nube Shorts

I turned 20 the first time I went to Japan. That was 11 years ago.

I remember being sent to Tokyo as a young model and working there for months, with only a very basic knowledge of English.

Far, far away from my hometown in northern France, I learned customs that weren't my own. A culture so rich and different from the one I knew that I felt as if I'd been sent to another planet.

The way people dress and carry themselves, the subcultures, the traditions, and that ancestral culture so deeply rooted in Japanese society had a profound impact on me—on my style, on the way I see and experience life.

I felt lonely, but also amazed and inspired.

The concept of Ikigai began to resonate with me: What is the reason I get up every morning? What gives my life meaning and joy?

"Cascada" Shirt and " Durmiente" Skirt

 

She was a quiet observer, and I began to capture that beauty through my lens.

Japan opened my eyes, and since then, they've never closed again.

"Flor" T-shirt in Gray and " Poesía" Skirt

Life has brought me back to Japan many times.

Until this trip, eleven years after the first one.

I'm an adult now.

I traveled to Kyoto for work and decided to stay a few more days to experience Japan in a way I hadn't been able to years ago.

I spent several days at traditional , immersed in the hot springs, letting my thoughts drift away.

I slept on a futon and tatami mats in a ryokan, walked around the city in geta.

I climbed mountains; I got lost on purpose just to find my way back.

I let my footsteps guide me through towns and cities.

I took some pictures.

Kaede is 20 years old—the same age I was when I first arrived in Japan.

Long-Sleeve Flan Top and Poesía Skirt

 

Text and photographs: Eléonor Delécluse