Yuko Shimizu at Japan Expo 2010

Many of you probably remember Yuko Yamaguchi, the designer of Hello Kitty, hosted this autumn in Milan during the celebrations for the 35th anniversary of the cat. Perhaps, not everyone knows that in reality Kitty’s “mum” is named Yuko Shimizu. The Japanese artist, Sanrio employee at the time, decided to leave the company to go freelance, leaving his famous creation in the hands of Yamaguchi.