Grandma Tamayo took the framed photo of Perriand and looked at it thoughtfully.

"I was in middle school when I came across Perriand's work at an exhibition, which was held inside a department store in Tokyo. Le Corbusier, Fernand Léger, Charlotte Perriand... Thinking about it now, it was a dreamlike exhibition that brought together works of three magnificent creators. Back then, I had no idea just how incredible these three people were, but when I found out that Perriand was a female architect, my heart started pounding with excitement. Of course, the works themselves were amazing. But for a girl of 13 or so, the fact that a female architect had become famous enough to have her works featured in an exhibition and seen by everyone was more astonishing.

That was when I decided that I would become an architect. I want to become like her, I thought. Not knowing anything about being an architect apart from the fact that they design buildings, I studied like crazy. Then at the university, I enrolled in an architecture degree program at the department of science and engineering, which was dominated by men. Not only that, I was determined to study at the École des Beaux-Arts... Oh, I felt so fortunate that my parents let me do whatever I wanted at a time when women still had little freedom. They told me that if I try at all, I should give it my everything and keep pushing with my chin up. They cheered me on.

Then, when I was 23, on the day I was flying over to Paris, they gave me this necklace. I've been wearing it ever since so that I won't forget their words of encouragement.

A lot of things have happened since then. But the fact that even now, in my eighties, I'm still going strong with my own atelier and my own work desk, makes me so happy.

I found this photo of Perriand in an architecture magazine. It seems like she was a keen climber. She is still in her twenties here... proudly expressing her true self as if to say, I'm ready to take on the future! Of course, with her natural elegance. I want to be like her. She is still my role model, you know."

Grandma Tamayo shared her story as she lovingly caressed the pearl necklace around her neck.

At the age of 85, Grandma Tamayo stepped down as the head of her firm and passed the baton to the younger generation. Now that she has taken on the role of adviser, she's enjoying a life of leisure and comfort, living alone in an apartment on the banks of the Seine.

Meanwhile, I'm busy working towards my goal of studying at École des Beaux-Arts, taking French lessons and preparing for my entrance exams. The cheer that Grandma Tamayo gave me that day is still with me, shining around my neck every single day.