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This rinzu silk summer ro kimono showcases a sophisticated interplay between traditional Japanese textile artistry and early 20th-century modernist sensibilities. The dark, lustrous background serves as a dramatic canvas for an array of origami cranes rendered in delicate yuzen-painted techniques, each bird meticulously outlined with gold foil and enhanced by supplementary silver threads. The cranes appear to float across the garment's surface in various orientations, creating a sense of graceful movement that transforms the static textile into a dynamic visual narrative.
The artistic treatment reflects the influence of Japanese modernism during the early 20th century, when traditional craft techniques began incorporating more geometric and stylized approaches reminiscent of the emerging Art Deco movement. The paper cranes themselves represent a fascinating meta-artistic concept - textile art depicting the art of paper folding - which speaks to the Japanese aesthetic principle of finding beauty in humble materials transformed through skillful craftsmanship. The close-up detail reveals the remarkable precision of the yuzen painting technique, where each fold line of the origami crane is carefully delineated, demonstrating the artist's deep understanding of both textile decoration and the structural geometry of origami.
Symbolically, the thousand cranes (senbazuru) carry profound meaning in Japanese culture, representing longevity, good fortune, and the fulfillment of wishes. As a garment worn by the bride prior to or after the wedding ceremony, this kimono would have embodied hopes for a marriage blessed with enduring happiness and prosperity, with each delicate crane serving as a visual prayer for the couple's future together.
It measures 50 inches (127 cm) from sleeve-end to sleeve-end and stands at 60 inches (152 cm) in height.