Flight thumbnail 1
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Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Not currently on display at the V&A
On short term loan out for exhibition

This object consists of 30 parts, some of which may be located elsewhere.

Flight

Kimono and Stencil
1990 (made)
Artist/Maker
Matsubara, Yoshichi (maker)
Place of origin
Tokyo (city) (made)

The dazzling design of this kimono was created using the stencil-resist dyeing, or katazome, technique. Its creator Matsubara Yoshichi, has developed a very individual method of working in which stencils of the same shape, but of diminishing size, are used in succession. Rice paste is applied through the largest stencil on to the fabric, which is then dipped in the indigo dye bath. The colour does not penetrate the area covered by the paste. The fabric dries, the paste is washed off and the whole process is repeated with the next stencil. Twenty-nine such stencils were used to create this particular, rather electrifying, design.


Object details

Categories
Clothing
Textiles
SCRAN
Object type
Kimono and stencil
Parts
This object consists of 30 parts.

  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Stencil
  • Kimono
TitleFlight (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Plain weave crepe silk, stencil resist-dyeing (kimono); Mulberry paper (stencils)
Silk Crepe
Resist-Dyeing
Brief description
Kimono, titled 'Flight' by Matsubara Yoshichi (b.1937), and accompanying stencils, Japan, 1990
Physical description
Kimono of crepe silk with abstract pattern created using the stencil resist-dyeing (katazome) technique. Twenty-nine stencils of the same shape, but of diminishing size, are used in succession. The dye used is indigo. The kimono is lined with blue plain weave silk. The stencils are made from mulberry paper laminated with persimmon juice.
Dimensions
  • Repeat length: 18cm
  • Repeat width: 9in
  • Repeat length: 46cm
  • Repeat width: 22.8cm
  • Collar to hem length: 62.5in
  • Collar to hem length: 158cm
  • Including sleeves width: 66in
  • Including sleeves width: 167.5cm
  • Under arms width: 30in
  • Under arms width: 76.2cm
  • Silk width: 18.5in
  • Silk width: 47cm
Style
Heisei
Gallery label
  • Deep yet luminous, this striking kimono was patterned using the traditional katazome technique. Rice paste applied through a stencil acts as a barrier when the fabric is dyed. Matsubara has developed a unique method of working in which stencils of the same shape, but of gradually diminishing size, are used in succession, the fabric being dyed after each application of rice paste.(29/02/2020)
  • Kimono, ‘Flight’ 1990 This dazzling kimono was patterned using the traditional katazome technique. Rice paste applied through a stencil acts as a barrier when the fabric is dyed. Matsubara has developed a unique method of working in which stencils of the same shape, but of gradually diminishing size, are used in succession, the fabric being dyed after each application of rice paste. Matsubara Yoshichi (born 1937) Tokyo Crêpe silk with stencil resist-dyeing (katazome) Museum no. FE.10-1995 (04/11/2015)
Summary
The dazzling design of this kimono was created using the stencil-resist dyeing, or katazome, technique. Its creator Matsubara Yoshichi, has developed a very individual method of working in which stencils of the same shape, but of diminishing size, are used in succession. Rice paste is applied through the largest stencil on to the fabric, which is then dipped in the indigo dye bath. The colour does not penetrate the area covered by the paste. The fabric dries, the paste is washed off and the whole process is repeated with the next stencil. Twenty-nine such stencils were used to create this particular, rather electrifying, design.
Bibliographic references
  • Jackson, Anna (editor), Kimono: Kyoto to Catwalk, London: V&A Publishing, 2020
  • Miller, Lesley Ellis, and Ana Cabrera Lafuente, with Claire Allen-Johnstone, eds. Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 2021. ISBN 978-0-500-48065-6. This object features in the publication Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion (2021)
Collection
East Asia Collection
Accession number
FE.10:1 to 30-1995

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Record createdFebruary 22, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O93510/flight-kimono-and-stencil-matsubara-yoshichi/
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