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Clothing and Textiles


Clothing and Textiles



4,626 photos
Sugawara no Michizane in Chinese dress, Muromachi period, Japan, late 15th century. Holding a small branch of plum blossom, the badge of a Chinese scholar-gentleman. His Chinese appearance may be a reference to the legend that he studied Zen in China after his death. One of his poems is inscribed at the top of the painting. A cultural figure of the Heian period (794 -1185), he is still widely regarded in Japan as the patron of scholarship. He was a scholar of Chinese and also a politician who rose to be Minister of the Right, one of the highest ranks in the government of the time. After his death in exile there were several disasters in the capital of Kyoto which people believed were caused by his angry spirit. He was therefore raised to the rank of a Shintô deity (renamed Karai Tenjin). In the Muromachi period (1333-1568) there was a revival of interest in kambun (Chinese-style writing) and Michizane's reputation was re-established as the greatest Japanese poet who had written in the Chinese language.Creator: Kitagawa Utamaro JA, JP 1 (1913.5-1.038)
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Sugawara no Michizane in Chinese dress, Muromachi period, Japan, late 15th centu...

Landscape with mountains, Japan, Muromachi period, 16th century. Set in a mountainous landscape is a building in the Chinese style rising above three other roofs. Two tall pine trees dominate the foreground. The square seal, reading 'Kantei', has been found on a dozen or so paintings, all exhibiting sharp brushwork and economical composition, as seen in the present works. The mountains, cliffs, buildings, and trees here are done using long, thick, 'axe-cut' strokes, with washes fading away to suggest the mist at the base of distant mountains. The records of a temple in Nara mention an order for folding screens from 'Kantei' in the sixth month of 1543, and there is a strong possibility these two works were also originally mounted on screens. One of a pair of hanging scroll paintings. JA, JP 358-9 (1881.12-10.01135-6)
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Landscape with mountains, Japan, Muromachi period, 16th century. Set in a mounta...

A paper making workshop, Genroku-period, Japan, c1688-c1704. To the right are the boards used for drying the paper and three people involved in this process. Inside the workshop a man leans over a vat to stretch a sheet and to his right the owner breaks off momentarily from his task of cutting to quench his thirst. Finally, a young girl stands packing the finished product. This scene is taken from the second of two scrolls illustrating artisans of various trades. The scrolls depict over fifty two trades in all, including brush-makers, dyers, street entertainers, sword polishers, saké makers, and florists. Most of the scenes are set in workshops with their front wall or screens removed, so that those inside can be seen at work. JA, JP ADD25 (1923.11-14.02.1);JA, JP ADD26 (1923.
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A paper making workshop, Genroku-period, Japan, c1688-c1704. To the right are th...

Porcelain teapot, Edo period, Japan, late 17th century. This elegant teapot is made of porcelain decorated in overglaze red, blue and green enamels in a formal Kakiemon style. Its larger size suggests that it was made at a time when tea was becoming gradually cheaper. This shape was the prototype for later European wares. JA, 1954.7-16.1.a,b
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Porcelain teapot, Edo period, Japan, late 17th century. This elegant teapot is m...

The actor Sanjô Kantarô as a tea-seller, Edo period, Japan, c1720-c1730. The onnagata (female impersonator) Sanjô Kantarô plays the Kabuki role of a seller of Uji tea carrying her portable stall. The print is hand coloured in shades of red, pink and purple, all now somewhat faded. Glossy glue has been applied to the black over-kimono to give the effect of lacquer and there are sprinklings of brass dust on the obi sash, the butterfly crest on the sleeve and the lid of the kettle. Kantarô has slipped off the right sleeve of the over-kimono to show off the elaborate under-kimono patterned with designs of waves and chrysanthemums. The overall elegance of the figure, especially the cocked little finger, suggests the he may be playing the role of some famous beauty in humble disguise.The tea implements are also drawn with great care, and we can see clearly all the details of the brazier and kettle with bamboo tea-scoop, tea jar, water pot and small cups. JA, 1906.12-20.049
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The actor Sanjô Kantarô as a tea-seller, Edo period, Japan, c1720-c1730. The onn...

'Hunting for insects', Japan, Edo period, c1768. A pair of lovers hunt for insects, probably fireflies or chirping crickets, on an early autumn night. A small cage stands ready on the ground while the young man searches through a plant of bush clover. He turns for a moment to exchange an intimate glance with the woman who wears an elegant kimono with a pattern of flowering morning glory. The black background must have been printed several times to produce the soft velvety depth against which the two figures and lantern stand out to such effect. Suzuki Harunobu was one of the first Ukiyo-e artists to develop techniques of full-colour printing from around 1765. He is already using the medium with great sophistication and delicacy in this print. He often echoes the courtly romance of the Heian period in his works, and here we may have a reference to a scene of insect-hunting from the "Genji monogatari" ('The Tale of Genji'). JA, 1945.11-1.08
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'Hunting for insects', Japan, Edo period, c1768. A pair of lovers hunt for insec...

'A girl dancing with shell clappers under her feet', Japan, Edo period, c1784. A little girl dressed in an exquisite kimono decorated with the lucky treasure pattern dances on half clam-shell 'hooves', fixed to her feet with silk cords which she pulls taught. Her kimono whirls and her hair flies out with the movement. Four women look on in kindly admiration. One provides music for the dance on her shamisen. They exchange amused glances, the central spectator seeming to raise her sleeve to her mouth to hide an indulgent smile. Accesories for the Lion Dance (shakkyô) hang in the top right corner. The slender elegance of the figures is emphasized by the long flowing lines of the impossibly long kimono sleeves. The tan-coloured kimono of the tallest woman has faded from its original bright purple, giving an autumnal tone to this intricately designed print. JA, 1924.3-11.01
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'A girl dancing with shell clappers under her feet', Japan, Edo period, c1784. A...

Ohisa of the Takashima tea-shop, Edo period, Japan, c1792-c1793. Ohisa turns to glance questioningly at someone just outside the picture. Her black gauze kimono has a pattern of yellow and white flashes, and the neck line is carefully arranged to reveal the back of her neck. Her obi (sash) has a design of a plover wheeling above stylized waves. The fan bears the triple oak leaf family crest (mon) of the Takashima family. She was one of the favourite subjects of several Ukiyo-e print artists in the 1790s, especially Utamaro. She was the daughter of the proprietor of the Takashima chain of cake-shops and tea shops in Edo and seems to have made her reputation serving tea at the family shop near Ryôgoku Bridge. Her beauty is celebrated in the poem in the top right, by Karabana Tadaaya. JA, 1927.6-13.06
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Ohisa of the Takashima tea-shop, Edo period, Japan, c1792-c1793. Ohisa turns to...

Women sewing, Edo period, Japan, c1795-c1796. A group of respectable married women, surrounded by their children and even a pet cat are working together on a hot summer's day folding and mending obi sashes. On the right, two of them stretch and fold a red silk sash tie-dyed with a white 'starfish' pattern. On the left, the sewing equipment scattered on the floor suggests that this woman is holding up the sash to check a mend she has just made in the fine gauze. A teenage girl examines an insect, perhaps a firefly, in its tiny cage. A little boy teases a cat with its reflection in a mirror, while a baby plays with its mother's fan. Utamaro depicted more types of women, in various activities, than any other Ukiyo-e artist. JA, 1912.4-16.0220
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Women sewing, Edo period, Japan, c1795-c1796. A group of respectable married wom...

A hanging scroll painting of monkeys, Edo period, Japan, c1795-c1801. A mother monkey and her baby sit together on a rock beside a blueberry bush. The mother is examining a single fruit that she has just picked, while the young one looks on. The painting shows clearly the artist's mastery of the depiction of animals; the soft texture of the animals' coats achieved by meticulously brushing in each individual hair over a background wash. Mori Sosen is most famous for his paintings of monkeys. In about 1808 he even changed the first character of his name to one meaning 'monkey'. He also founded a school of animal painting with his brother Shûhô, in Osaka. JA, JP 2500 (1913.5-1.0531)
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A hanging scroll painting of monkeys, Edo period, Japan, c1795-c1801. A mother m...

Birds and flowers, Edo period, Japan, 1791. A white parrot perched on a blossoming branch. The parrot is not native to Japan, but it was imported from as early as the ninth century, when the birds were presented to the imperial court. Parrots remained rare even during the Edo period (1600-1868), but featured at entertainment stalls in several cities. The white parrot was already a popular theme for paintings, but the artist Sessai may well have observed one in real life at one of these stalls. Although Sessai has here followed the thematic tradition of kachôga (bird-and-flower painting), and used conventional monochrome brushwork on the tree, he has adopted a sharply empirical style for the parrot. JA, JP ADD607 (1979.11-12.01)
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Birds and flowers, Edo period, Japan, 1791. A white parrot perched on a blossomi...

Portrait of two young women, Edo period, Japan, late 18th century. A young woman is wearing a bright blue kimono with a landscape design around the base, and a sumptuous obi (sash) interwoven with gold thread. Her attendant wears an uwagi (jacket) trimmed at the collar in black, over a blue stencil patterned gown, with a green striped obi and a reddish-brown apron tied in a bow at the front. She holds a porcelain hi-ire (portable brazier, part of a smoking set) of Mikawachi ware, on which is a design in underglaze blue of the moon over a lake and pavilion, with a poem above. The black pigment visible between the woman's lips suggests she has blackened teeth, indicating her married status. The women's hair is dressed in the Shimada style with tôrôbin (lantern locks). JA, JP ADD720 (1982.10-4.01)
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Portrait of two young women, Edo period, Japan, late 18th century. A young woman...