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What’s more, as the exhibition’s curation (by Anna Jackson) attests, while the kimono is embedded in Japan’s cultural consciousness as a national mode of dress, it has also lived many lives at home and abroad: proving a certain malleability that has spoken to different eras, especially in high fashion. Going back to the beginning, it will take stock of centuries of the kimono: from the 16th century, when it became the principle garment worn by people of all social standing in Japan to the Edo period, between the 17th and 19th centuries, where the growth of the rich merchant class allowed different designs, patterns and materials to flourish to the post-world war two period where the kimono stops being an everyday item of clothing, instead becoming a codified symbol of being Japanese in a newly globalised world to its current status, whereby a younger generation are beginning to rediscover and twist the ways it can be worn. Speaking to these ebbs and flows in use, Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk – opening this Saturday, February 29 at the V&A – will propose the kimono as a constantly evolving icon of fashion. And though you might live in Japan and never see an actual geisha in your lifetime, my third kimono sighting was somehow rarer still: inside a fashion afterparty, at what was described to me as “the most iconic gay bar in Shinjuku”, on a woman dancing and smoking with her eyes shut to A-Ha’s Take On Me.Īfterwards, I thought about how those different situations speak to the charged complexities of a garment which is easily definable in shape – straight-seamed, wide-sleeved – but hard to absolutely pin down in terms of use: the kimono has been both formal and casual, liberating and restrictive, masculine and feminine, for centuries now.
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The second was on a group of three geisha travelling on a bullet train – one senior geisha, leading two young maiko, or geishas-in-training – recognisable by their full traditional kimono, white-painted skin and delicate floral kanzashi (hair ornaments) woven into their buns. In streets lined with tourists clearly wearing cheap rental kimono, her look stood out: certainly not-for-hire, her over-kimono was pale pink with darker pink embroidery and toothpaste-green lining she wore big splashes of blusher, with her hair in a perfect chignon. One was on a middle-aged woman stocking up on incense at the foot of the Kiyomizu-dera Temple, in Kyoto. It offers an opportunity to see how our ancestors dressed, to consider the amazing accomplishments of contemporary fashion, and to imagine how our descendants may dress in the distant future as clothing design continues on its tireless evolutionary path.Walking around Kyoto and Tokyo last November, I recorded three sightings of kimono worn on the street.
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The KCI believes that "clothing is an essential manifestation of our very being" and their passion and dedication positively radiate from every page of this book.
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Showcasing a vast selection of skilled photographs from the Institute's archives, depicting the clothing expertly displayed and arranged on custom-made mannequins, Fashion is a fascinating excursion through the last three centuries of clothing trends.įrom a rare treasure such as a 17th-century iron corset with embroidered bodice to modern-day outfits by such designers as Yves Saint Laurent and Calvin Klein, the collection provides an extensive overview of the evolution of women's fashion. With an emphasis on Western women's clothing, the KCI has amassed a wide range of historical garments, underwear, shoes, and fashion accessories dating from the 18th century to the present day. Founded in 1978, the KCI holds one of the world's most extensive clothing collections and has curated many exhibitions worldwide. The Kyoto Costume Institute (KCI) recognizes the importance of understanding clothing sociologically, historically, and artistically. A person's clothing, whether it's a sari, kimono, or business suit, is an essential key to his or her culture, class, personality, or even religion.