“TheRinzaiZen temple Ryoanji -- Temple of the Peaceful Dragon -- was built in Kyoto in the late 1400s, and the garden may be nearly as old. Its fifteen moss-covered boulders are placed so that, viewed from any point, only fourteen of the boulders are visible. Tradition says only the enlightened see all fifteen boulders. The garden invites us to contemplate imperfection and limitation.” buddhism.about.com
My applique cushion is on the chair.
Nagoya obi (informal obi), silk brocade, contemporary
Scenes of Kyoto, including the Gion Festival and a pagoda (probably at either Toji Shrine or YasakaTemple).
The same scene of the karesansui garden (literally meaning dry mountain and water) at Ryōanji temple, Kyoto, Japan. The dyer’s seal is included on the right front panel.Handpainted yuzen.
The blue tones in the gravel make it feel more like the water it represents. I would like this karinui even more if I could have the top half dyed purple - all over pale pink isn't my style. There are places in Kyoto that will do this...
A view of a Japanese garden, as seen from a veranda, with bamboo leaves, pines and a stone lantern, in monochrome. Yuzen (rice paste resist dye). The dyer’s seal is visible on the right.
All over stencil-dyed pattern of clouds and mountains, in the colourful bingata (Okinawan stencil dyeing) style. The motifs alternate direction, to cope with the kimono’s lack of a shoulder seam, so some are upside down.
Pine boughs, wisteria and chrysanthemum against an asanoha (hemp leaf pattern) background.Uchikake are worn as a trailing robe over a white kakeshita wedding kimono and coloured uchikake are the second worn during the wedding day, as an all white one is worn for the ceremony.
This is the heaviest of the uchikake on display. Like the others, it is ex rental. The design is almost identical to 17th century Noh costumes which were also woven with the karaori technique. Since I'm never likely to have a 17th century Noh atsuita robe, this makes a good alternative - all the weaving technique is there.
Uchikake (wedding robe), silk,1980s
Japanese palaces, plum blossoms, bamboo, pine, peony and chrysanthemum are depicted among the clouds.
Pine boughs and clouds are arranged against craggy mountains, with Chinese style palace buildings – clearly this is an interpretation of a Chinese scene.The clouds are filled in with yosōku designs (ancient patterns of the Heian Court).
Tsumugi, an informal, is an unusual choice for an uchikake and this is the only one I've seen made from tsumugi. It belongs to the same era as the roketsuzome tomesode shown in part 4. The landscape is rather wild and craggy, with the shape of the mountains slightly reminiscent of lightning! The Chinese palaces are outlined with kinkoma couching.
Fukuro (fold) obi, silk brocade, contemporary
A view of Mt Hakone is repeated along the length of the obi, woven to resemble an ukiyo-e print.
The "fringe" is the raw end of the obi, as it has been unpicked and the obi stiffener taken out.
Fukuro Nagoya obi, silk brocade, contemporary
Slightly shorter than a true fukuro obi, this is zentsu (all over patterned) with abstract mountains like the first furisode in this exhibition.
I think one of the reasons I like this abstract mountains motif is its possibilities for an applique design!
Nagoya obi (informal obi), silk brocade, contemporary
Both the maple leaves and the deer motifs are associated with autumn; the deer may also be a reference to the ancient Japanese capital Nara, noted for its deer park.Obi with designs on the “drum” section can only be tied in the otaiko (drum) style, with the large picture flat on the back of the obi.
Fukuro (fold) obi, hand painted silk lamé, contemporary
A classical Chinese landscape depicted in the style of a scroll painting. The artist’s signature is visible at the bottom of the obi.
The lamé background gives a shimmering effect which is really beautiful - photos don't do it justice.
Nagoya obi (informal obi), tsumugi (spun) silk, contemporary
An abstract modern design of autumn forests. Tsumugi, spun made from the silk cocoon waste, is always informal, although it may be as expensive as formal kimono due to the amount of hand labour involved.
Tsumugi + retro + trees = perfect! The texture of the silk makes me think of a walk in an autumn woodland.
Trees in Art Deco style.It is informal, but would have been very expensive when new, due to the slow progress of handweaving tsuzureori.
I bought this from a Yahoo! Japan auction, along with an early 1960s omeshi kimono. The trees remind me of several illustrations by Kay Nielsen. It is a great example of how Japanese design was influenced by Art Deco which in turn was influenced by Japanese designs.... ideas going full circle.
Fukuro (fold) obi, silk brocade, 1980s
A modern design of winter trees, appropriate for late November and early December only.
The trees are depicted in a modern style similar to those on the red fukuro obi hung on the wall (see part 4).
The motif seems to be a European castle and mountains. It is informal, but would have been very expensive when new, due to the slow progress of handweaving tsuzureori.
The last display case also contained some kimono fabric manufacturers' catalogues from the 1960s.
“The Bridge at Uji” (also called WillowBridge) is the most important ancient bridge linking the two historical cities Kyoto and Nara. It is the setting for the final scene in the Japanese classic The Tale of Genji (Genji Monogatari). It became an extremely popular theme during the seventeenth century, often on folding screens.Classical Japanese designs like this are usually considered higher status than modern motifs.
Lovely design. It has a slight fold line where the obi wraps around the body, but I would like to wear this sometime.
Fukuro (fold) obi, silk brocade, 1970s
A modern design of winter trees, appropriate for late November and early December only.
One of my favourite motifs, although for my least favourite time of year!
Susomoyō - Landscape on the skirt
Kurotomesode (black formal kimono), 1930s
Yuzen (rice paste resist dye) design of a mountain retreat, arranged as a ryozuma (mirror image) design.Landscape designs along the skirt of the kimono became popular in the late nineteenth century and are typical of formal kimono today, although the ryozuma pattern layout is rarely seen after the mid twentieth century.
Once again, the delicacy and quality of the yuzen is way above modern yuzen. The kinsha silk also isn't used for kurotomesode now. Kinsha is so much lighter and thinner than chirimen and must have been lovely to wear. I suspect modern air conditioning at wedding venues has much to answer for, in the disappearance of kinsha for kurotomesode and the scarcity of ro kurotomesode nowadays.
A tomesode karinui (kimono fabric) has been lengthened by adding an extra panel into the back, to make it long enough for a geisha’s formal de kimono. The shape of the back of the collar is much lower than normal kimono and there is padding at the hem. Unlike the other kimono displayed on the walls in the exhibition, this is worn to trail on the floor indoors.The abstract design hybridises pine boughs and karabana (imaginary Chinese flowers) over a stream.
This kimono is a bit of a puzzle. I don't know if it ever belonged to a real geisha (who certainly do wear hikizuri made from kurotomesode karinui) but the crests are the standard kiri (paulownia) crest that anyone can wear, and I would have expected the crest of a geisha house instead. Maybe someone who knows more about geisha okiya crests could give me an idea? I don't think it was made for geisha henshin (the dressing up studios popular in places like Kyoto) as it is hardly worn and there's no stock number hidden inside. Any ideas?
Yuzen (rice paste resist dye) design showing farmhouses in a rural scene.
Another kimono fabric with similar designs to those I used to admire at Yamato Kimono. This one has very slight fading and yellowing along the seams and on the collar fabric. I don't know if I would make it into kimono - the side seam fading would disappear into the seam allowance and I might be able to turn the collar round so the better end appears on the left (the right would be overlapped when the kimono was worn). I'll have to check it out in daylight and see how bad it really is - it looks perfect when displayed like this though!
I hope you enjoyed your tour! Goshisosama deshita! ("It was a feast", as one Japanese visitor commented this week).
