Object History
This cotton-printed rectangular fabric was gifted to Dr. Reem Tariq El Mutwalli by Ms. Manami Tominaga, a Japanese lady living in the UAE, in 2017. It was eventually added to The Zay Initiative collection.
Object Features
This is a cotton fabric with floral motifs in (indigo) blue stencil printing or (katazome_print) technique.
It has a thick border in two tiers. The first tier or the outermost layer is filled with dotted repeats and the second tier, or the inner layer is a floral repeat with dots and wavy lines. The main field of the fabric is filled with repeats of a dotted floral motif.
More info
Katazome is a traditional Japanese textile printing technique that utilizes stencils to create intricate and detailed designs on fabric. The word “katazome” translates to “stencil dyeing” in English, and the technique involves creating a stencil out of paper or other materials and then applying a resist paste to the fabric through the stencil. Once the paste has dried, the fabric is dyed, and the areas where the resist paste was applied remain undyed, creating a pattern on the fabric.
Katazome stencils are typically made using a combination of hand-carving and off-late machine-cutting techniques. The stencils themselves can be highly detailed, with intricate designs and patterns that can take weeks or even months to create. The resist paste used in katazome can also vary depending on the desired effect, with some pastes being more resistant to dye than others.
During the Edo period (1603-1868), katazome became a popular art form among the common people in Japan, and various regional styles of the technique emerged. In addition to clothing, katazome was used to create a wide range of household items such as curtains, bedding, and tablecloths. The intricate designs and vibrant colours of katazome made it a highly sought-after craft, and the popularity of the technique continued to grow.
Links
- Morishima, Yuki, et al. Kimono Refashioned: Japan’s Impact on International Fashion. USA, Asian Art Museum, 2018.
- Kahlenberg, Mary Hunt. Asian Costumes and Textiles: From the Bosphorus to Fujiama. Italy, Skira, 2001.
- Liddell, Jill. The Story of the Kimono. USA, E P Dutton, 1989.
- Dalby, Liza Crihfield. Kimono: Fashioning Culture. Reaktion Books, 1993.
- Gluckman, Dale Carolyn and Sharon Sadako Takeda. When Art Became Fashion: Kosode in Edo-Period Japan. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1996.
- Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk. 27 Aug. – 25 Oct. 2020, V&A South Kensington, London https://www.vam.ac.uk/exhibitions/kimono-kyoto-to-catwalk
- Gluckman, Dale Carolyn. “Liza Dalby. Kimono: Fashioning Culture.:Kimono: Fashioning Culture.” Museum Anthropology, vol. 19, no. 1, Mar. 1995, pp. 79–81. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.1525/mua.1995.19.1.79
- “Meisen Kimono From HALI 184 – HALI.” HALI, 24 July 2015, hali.com/news/meisen-kimono.
- Kimono Style: Edo Traditions to Modern Design: The John C. Weber Collection. USA, Met Publications, www.metmuseum.org/art/metpublications/Kimono_Style
- Kimono Refashioned. 8 Feb. – 5 May, 2019, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco https://exhibitions.asianart.org/exhibitions/kimono-refashioned/
- Takeda, Sharon Sadako. Monumenta Nipponica, vol. 49, no. 2, 1994, pp. 245–47. JSTOR,https://doi.org/10.2307/2385177. Accessed 10 May 2023.
- Guth, Christine. Journal of Japanese Studies, vol. 20, no. 2, 1994, pp. 518–22. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/133209. Accessed 10 May 2023.
- Richard, Naomi Noble. “Nō Motifs in the Decoration of a Mid-Edo Period Kosode.” Metropolitan Museum Journal, vol. 25, 1990, pp. 175–83. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1512899. Accessed 10 May 2023.
- Kramer, Elizabeth. “Review of ‘Kimono: A Modern History.’” Reviews in History, School of Advanced Study, 2015. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14296/rih/2014/1787.
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