Wearable Arts of Japan Seattle Art Museum Author(S): Sarah Loudon Source: Art Education, Vol
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National Art Education Association Instructional Resources: Wearable Arts of Japan Seattle Art Museum Author(s): Sarah Loudon Source: Art Education, Vol. 49, No. 6, Art Education Reform and New Technologies (Nov., 1996), pp. 25-32 Published by: National Art Education Association Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3193620 . Accessed: 13/02/2011 12:48 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use. Please contact the publisher regarding any further use of this work. Publisher contact information may be obtained at . http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=naea. Each copy of any part of a JSTOR transmission must contain the same copyright notice that appears on the screen or printed page of such transmission. JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. National Art Education Association is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Art Education. http://www.jstor.org INSTRUCTIONAL WEARABLE A ARTS Si , l t4 ? OF 'O JAPAN kw#; SEATTLE ART MUSEUM KatsushikaHokusai, Japanese (1760-1849). Five Beautiful Women. Edoperiod, early 19th century. Gouache, ink, silk, scroll. 34"Hx 13 1/2"W.Margaret E. Fuller Purchase Fund. SeattleArt Museum. Photo credit: Susan Dirk. WEARABLEARTS OF JAPAN SEATTLE ART MUSEUM INTRODUCTION andfront overlap. The basicshape and construction are shared Japanis knownfor a high levelof accomplishmentin the withother traditional garments, including the twocoats and areasof craftand decorative arts. In fact, traditionally in Japan coverletshown here. There is some variationin the proportions the distinctionbetween fine arts and decorative arts was not of kimono-for instance,in the lengthand width of the madeas it was in the West.Many of Japan's best known sleeves-however, the standardconstruction is a greatcontrast paintersalso worked in ceramics,lacquer design, and textiles. to the emphasison varietyof shaping,tailoring, and garment Participantsin chanoyu(tea ceremony) devote attention to constructionin Westernclothing. For kimonos, the design ceramics,bamboo utensils, landscape design, lacquerware, and interestcomes firstfrom the designof the fabricitself and textilesas well as to the hangingscrolls that are part of the secondfrom the wayit is wornand combined with other items teahouseenvironment. Textiles are the focusof this resource, to createan ensemble.The long straightexpanse of clothon beginningwith a paintingto introducekimonos, their design the backof kimonosand other traditional garments sometimes andhow they areworn. Three textiles (a man'sjacket, a servesas a surfacefor a compositionpainted in dyes:the coverlet,and a farmer'scoat) are shown with discussion of their relationshipbetween Japanese textiles and painting is designand social background. introducedby the secondexample. Kimonois a relativelyrecent term (19thcentury) for the The Japanesetextile collection of the SeattleArt Museum is traditionalJapanese garment, floor length and long-sleeved, exhibitedboth at the downtownlocation and at the Seattle thatis wornwith a sash knownas a obi.Although kimono refers AsianArt Museum. Selections from this collectionare included to bothmen's and women's garments, the men'skimono is in the travelingexhibition Beyond the Tanabata Bridge: A seldomworn in Japan today. On special occasions in TextileJourney in Japan. contemporaryJapan, women wear kimonos in a fairlystandard waycompared with the varietyof traditionalclothing of the GOALS past. 1.To examineand compare the designof severalexamples The kimonois remarkablefor its simplicityof construction. ofJapanese textiles and to analyzethe relationshipbetween the A boltof fabricin the standard14" width is cut intoa few surfacedesign of the textiles(the two-dimensional design) and rectangularsections (nothingwasted!), and sewn togetherwith the garmentconstruction (the three-dimensional design). a few straightseams. Two very long sectionsare joined 2. To discussexamples of Japanese textiles as social togetherup the centerof the backand are left open down the indicatorsand distinguish items that were madefor personal front.The otherrectangular sections form the sleeves,collar use fromitems made for a livelihood. Five Beautiful Women KatsushikaHokusai (1760-1849), Edo period, early 19th century, Hanging scroll, ink and color on paper,34" x 131/2",Seattle Art Museum 56.246, Margaret E. FullerPurchase Fund OBJECTIVE prolificartist and not onlycreated many series of Studentswill examine a paintingfor visual information about landscapeprints but was also a painterof scrollsand folding traditionalJapanese women's clothing. screens. The womenshown in this hangingscroll have individuality BACKGROUND not so muchfrom their facial features as fromtheir posture, KatsushikaHokusai (1760-1849) is best knownin the U.S. activities,and clothing. Although they overlap,the womendon't for his woodblockprints, in particularthe famousprint of the seem to noticeone another,and they arenot placed in a defined largewave with Mt. Fujiin the distance.He was an incredibly setting.The topwoman pauses to thinkwhile writing a poem. IART EDUCATION / NOVEMBER 1996 INSTRUCTIONAL 0 I The secondwoman bends overher flowerarranging. The third womanis arranging.The thirdis decoratedwith bush clover, womanwears the hat of a shrinepilgrim. The fourthappears to one of seven autumngrasses andcommon fall motif. The fourth be a courtesan.The fifthreads a book,perhaps a storyof the is wearingseveral layers of cherryblossoms in differentcolors womenfloating above her. foran exuberantspring outfit. The bottomwoman is wearinga Hokusaiput a lot of careinto painting the women'skimonos. lightweightfabric for summer wear (althoughits darkcolor A woman'skimono conveyed a lot abouther; it reflectednot maynot seem summeryto us). onlyher individualtaste, but alsoher class,marriage status, Allkimonos are decorated with allover repeated patterns. age, the seasonand the formalityof the occasion.Sumptuary Whatdifferent ways of wearingthe kimonosdo you notice? lawsprohibited common people from wearing luxurious Lookat the obis,and you can see thatthey aretied in different fabrics,brilliant colors, and elaborately patterned garments ways,including the womanin cherryblossoms who has her obi reservedfor the elite. tiedin front.Now look for bits of liningsand undergarments thatshow some contrast,primarily in red.These detailsof their DISCUSSION ensembles,as well as the differentpatterns, were how these Whatdo these womenhave in common,and what shows womenshowed their individuality while all wearing similarly theirindividuality? Clearly these womenenjoyed leisure time cutkimonos. forpursuits of writingpoetry (top), flower arranging (second The purchaseof kimonofabric was an importantand major fromtop), and reading a book (bottom).They enjoyedwearing expensefor these women.Women bought bolts of kimono finekimonos, and judging from the widehanging sleeves, were fabricand sewed them up themselves.Sewing up the garment not concernedwith a lot of housework,cooking, or sports. tookno greatskill, as a coupleof cuts andstraight seams did Theirkimonos show attentionto detailsin the fabric.You the trick. canenjoy the patternsand imagine the heavyweight of the Traditionally,chairs were not used inJapan; people sat on brocadeof one comparedwith the gauzylight feel of another. the flooron tatamimats. In this painting,you can see howtheir Eachhad its ownseason of wear,determined by its warmthbut clothingwas designedto be seen eitherwhile sitting on the alsoby its motif;the toppattern of irisgrowing by the waterwas floor,with their wide sleeves andhems spreadaround them, or forwear in Maywhile iris arein bloom.The secondis a fall whilestanding. The effectwould not be the samewhile sitting ensemble,signaled partly by the fallchrysanthemums the on a chairor at a table! Coat (hanten) Showaperiod, ca. 1930-40,Silk cloth with freehand paste-resist decoration (yuzenzome), 36 5/8"x 50 3/8",Seattle Art Museum 89.163, Gift of Virginia and Bagley Wright OBJECTIVES canbe achievedwithin the colors,and the numberof colors. Studentswill: 1) analyzea textiledesign and its relationship The processis time-consuming,requires great skill, and has withpainting; 2) discussa textilecreated by an urban alwaysbeen expensive. professionaltextile artist. DISCUSSION BACKGROUND Here'sanother traditional garment, a coatfor a man. This coatwas an urbanmerchant's garment. As merchants Althoughit is shorterthan a kimono,the constructionis becamewealthier, their clothing resembled more the textiles similar.The designis of a pairof mandarinducks on a pondin wornby the elite,and this jacket was madewith the yuzenzome the snow.The backof the coatis shownhere (as they are techniqueon silk.The yuzen technique is the textiletechnique usuallyshown in museumsand in books)because the main most closelyrelated to paintingand was developedby fan designis on the back.Due