This silk kimono displays vertical stripes in a harmonious color palette of cream/ivory, teal blue, and warm orange-rust tones, creating a rhythmic pattern across the entire surface. The vertical striping creates visual elongation and elegance typical of kimono design. Several of the image details provide detailed close-ups of the fabric's intricate construction. Here you can clearly see the complexity of the weaving - this is rinzu (damask) chirimen (crepe) silk, which means it combines two sophisticated techniques. The crepe gives the fabric a subtle textural quality with its characteristic slight crinkle, while the damask technique creates a lustrous, figured weave.

Most remarkably, woven within these stripes is a minute sayagata motif - a traditional Japanese geometric pattern of interlocking key-fret or swastika-like symbols that form a continuous, interconnecting design. This damask pattern is so subtle and finely executed that it creates an almost imperceptible secondary layer of decoration within the striped framework, visible mainly through slight variations in the silk's reflective quality.

The technical mastery required to achieve this layered effect - combining vertical stripes with an intricately woven geometric damask pattern - demonstrates the exceptional skill of Japanese textile artisans. The result is a kimono that appears elegantly simple from a distance but reveals extraordinary complexity and refinement upon closer examination.

It measures approximately 46 inches from sleeve-end to sleeve-end and 57 inches in height, or about 117 centimeters by 145 centimeters.

This artwork is featured on page 123 of Art Kimono: Aesthetic Revelations of Japan, 1905-1960. This book, published by Yorke Antique Textiles, can be previewed or purchased on our website here.

This kimono is also featured on page 94 of the Spring 2022 edition of Arts of Asia.

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