: ‘I Am Both Ancient and Trendy.’ He’s a Buddhist Monk, a Makeup Artist and an LGBTQ Activist #WorldNEWS Buddhist monks are typically trained to live austerely, wearing plain robes and few accessories.

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‘I Am Both Ancient and Trendy.’ He’s a Buddhist Monk, a Makeup Artist and an LGBTQ Activist #WorldNEWS
Buddhist monks are typically trained to live austerely, wearing plain robes and few accessories. Kodo Nishimura does anything but. He tends to his family’s temple in Tokyo while working as a makeup artist and LGBTQ activist. “I am both ancient and trendy,” Nishimura, 32, says over Zoom from his home in the Japanese capital, wearing a Buddhist robe and just a little tinted lip balm.
The day before, he worked 13 hours as the makeup director for the Miss Universe Japan finals, leading a team of six assistants to ensure contestants, judges and former winners all looked fabulous. His makeup career and activism landed him an appearance on Netflix’s Queer Eye: We’re in Japan! in 2019, and his clients include the musical sister duo Chloe x Halle and Christina Milian. In February, he is releasing his first English-language book, This Monk Wears Heels, an autobiography that weaves his personal story with Buddhist teachings.
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Nishimura wasn’t always so comfortable living with both sides of himself, but he hopes that sharing his journey can help others to learn to love themselves.
Though he grew up watching his parents, both monks, presiding over funerals and ancestor worship ceremonies at their 500-year-old Buddhist temple, Nishimura never wanted to follow in their footsteps. He always thought Buddhist life was incompatible with his identity. At the time, he didn’t see the point of chanting, and shaving his head was unthinkable because he adored long hair. “As a child who loved Disney princesses, it was the total opposite of what I wanted to be and what I loved,” he says.

Masaki Sato
Nishimura knew from a young age that he was attracted to men, and considers himself “gender-gifted,” a term that describes someone whose gender expression goes beyond the binary. But throughout his high school years in Japan, Nishimura felt ashamed of his sexuality and kept to himself to avoid getting bullied by classmates.
Studying at Parsons School of Design in New York City allowed him to find acceptance as an LGBTQ person. His desire to fully express himself and become spiritually stronger gave him the courage to embrace his Buddhist roots. At 24, he began monk training in Japan while traveling back and forth to the U. S. to work as a makeup artist. That same year, he came out to his parents. To his surprise, his father, a professor of Buddhist studies, told Nishimura to live the life he wants.
Read more: What Asias LGBTQ+ Movement Can Learn From Japan
But Nishimura still worried whether he could remain true to himself if he had to give up his passion for makeup and fashion to become a monk—and whether his sexuality would ever be accepted by others of his faith.

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