Rei Kawakubo by Peter Lindbergh, 1982.
An untrained fashion designer, Kawakubo studied fine arts and literature at Keno University and then went to work at a textile company and as a freelance stylist in 1967. By 1973, she'd established her own company, Comme des Garçons Co. Ltd in Tokyo and opened up her first boutique in Tokyo in 1975.