Obi
Japanese
Description
Gallery Rotation Winter 2013
Obi
Japan, Showa period (1926–1989)
1970s
Ivory colored sateen weave silk with large woven designs in gold-leafed paper
Gift of Howard and Patricia Yamaguchi, 2005/1.328
These gorgeous obi, all made of brocade, were intended to be worn with and complement formal kimono for festive events such as weddings and New Year’s gatherings. Some are designed with motifs, shapes, and colors that have auspicious meaning. For example, the green obi with the gold hexagonal shapes refers to eternity (evergreen) and longevity (the hexagon is a traditional symbol of a tortoise shell). Others have classic motifs, such as the off-white obi with drums and ox carts based on the Tale of Genji, an eleventh-century novella.
These obi were made in the Nishijin area of the city of Kyoto, which has dominated the production of high-quality woven textiles since the fifteenth century. The weaving industry flourished there under the protection and encouragement of the flamboyant military rulers of the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1568–1615), Oda Nobunaga (1534–1582) and Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536–1598). The production of Nishijin textiles is very complex, and specialized in five main areas—designing and creating patterns, producing silk threads, producing tools (including weaving machines), weaving, and final sewing—each accomplished in a different workshop.
Subject Matter:
The gold used here is pure gold. A maru obi (woven double width on a loom) with a continuous design on both sides is the most formal kind of obi, used with tomesode kimono.
This gorgeous obi, made of brocade, was intended to be worn with and complement formal kimono for festive events such as weddings and New Year’s gatherings.
This obi was made in the Nishijin area of the city of Kyoto, which has dominated the production of high-quality woven textiles since the fifteenth century. The production of Nishijin textiles is very complex, and specialized in five main areas—designing and creating patterns, producing silk threads, producing tools (including weaving machines), weaving, and final sewing—each accomplished in a different workshop.
Physical Description:
Maru obi with ivory colored sateen weave silk (shusu) with large woven paulownia designs in gold-leafed paper (kinran)
Usage Rights:
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