num_pages: 320
description: In traditional Japanese dress the surface of the garment is most important. The T-shaped straight-seamed front-wrapping kimono has changed its shape very little over the centuries but the weaving dyeing and embroidery used to decorate its surface make each a unique wearable work of art. Choice of color and pattern vary richly to indicate gender age status wealth and taste and are executed in complex combination of weaving dyeing and embroidery techniques with a single garment sometimes requiring the expert skills of a number of different artisans.Kimono showcases a magnificent range of kimonos from the the Khalili Collection which comprises more than 200 garments and spans almost 300 years of Japanese textile artistry.Gorgeously illustrated and written by an international team of experts the book surveys kimono of the imperial court samurai aristocracy and affluent merchant classes of the Edo period (16031868); the shifting styles and new color palette of Meiji period dress (18681912); and the bold and dazzling kimono of the Taisho (191226) and early Showa (192689) periods when designers used innovative new techniques and fused traditional looks with inspiration from the modernist aesthetic then sweeping the world.
language: English
title: Kimono: The Art and Evolution of Japanese Fashion
publisher: Thames & Hudson