Printed Book available from Jan.28 2022
ISBN978-3-98527-476-5.
My Page P.74-75
In this book project, I chose my machine sewing lace work. The patterns of these work were taken from my previous kimono work.
Japanese kimonos have a limited number of places and seasons to wear, depending on the pattern and the way they are drawn. The so-called dress code is determined by the design. The creatures and flowers depicted there are also meaningful. Each flower and animal has a "fairy tale", and by drawing creatures and flowers, you can see what kind of feelings are put into the kimono. Mozart used his music to tell the story, as the Japanese drew on kimono.
It is interesting to be able to tell the story in different ways.
About this work
I am learning kimono weaving at the Yoshida weaving workshop in the Nishijin district, which is the center of kimono weaving in Japan. As is often the case when making textiles, weavers are worried that they may not have the required amount, so they dye more threads than they need. The remaining threads are of little use in making new kimono fabrics. This is because the weaver decides to create a new piece based on a design plan such as thread size and color combination. If I don't take advantage of these leftover threads, they will be thrown away someday. I never sewed with weaving thread, but I decided to try it. Not only in the workshop, but also in my house, the rest of the thread used for sewing in the past has not been used for years. In addition to that, I thought that the cloth used for trial dyeing and scrap after making the work could be incorporated into my new work.
I drew a design on a non-woven fabric that dissolves in water, and used the zigzag function of the sewing machine to draw a picture on it with those threads and cloth. This work uses a shirt pattern, so if the foundation cloth is dissolved in water, each will be finished in the shape of a shirt part. Since there is no base, the thread part will be lace. The part that incorporates the cloth is finished as embroidery.
This design is a reused of a previously made wedding kimono called Uchikake. In contrast to this colorful finish, the kimono fabric was lined with gold ink and it was burned with incense sticks, leaving only the lines. I chose the patterns traditionally used for Japanese ceremonial kimonos such as upper and lower dragons, peony, wisteria, chrysanthemums, owls and butterflies.
I'm trying to give new value and meaning by finding new perspectives on what is considered useless and what I have created earlier. I am also trying to take advantage of the zigzag features of sewing machines that are used only for limited purposes, such as engraving names and trimming fabrics.
Fairy tales used to be orally transmitted and kept changing in the process. Also the author of a literary fairy tale is free to let his imagination run wild and create fantastic wonder tales. Based on this idea, at the occasion of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s 265th birthday and the 230th anniversary of his death, 64 artists from 33 countries came together to honor the world-famous composer with contemporary imagery. It was also 230 years ago that Mozart’s opera “The Magic Flute” was first performed. The editor of this fairy tale inspired gift book has divided the artworks from around the world into chapters and added selected haiku poems, quotes, slogans, and illustrations. The result is a multifaceted homage from the imaginative perspective of modern artists.