Silk Kimono with Scattered Sensu and Botanical Motifs

This silk kimono presents a lively composition of scattered sensu (folding fans) through silk-screening, creating dynamic visual rhythm across a warm mauve-burgundy ground. The fans appear in two distinct treatments: some rendered in cream with delicate botanical imagery in soft teal and green tones, others suggested through outline alone in the ground color, revealing decorative patterns within their pleated surfaces.

Each cream-colored fan displays different seasonal imagery—bamboo fronds, flowering branches possibly depicting hagi (bush clover) or other autumn plants, and stylized water patterns with flowing lines. This variety transforms the fans into miniature painting surfaces, echoing the tradition of decorated fan papers as a distinct art form in Japanese culture. The outline-style fans feature chrysanthemums, waves, and other classical motifs rendered in delicate linework.

Folding fans carry rich symbolic associations: their shape expanding from a narrow base represents growing prosperity and the unfolding of good fortune. Fans also evoke elegance, courtly refinement, and the performing arts where they serve as essential accessories. The scattering of multiple fans—a composition known as senmen nagashi or "floating fans"—multiplies these auspicious meanings while creating visual movement suggesting fans tossed playfully into the air or floating on water.

The color palette of dusty rose, cream, and soft teal creates feminine elegance with understated sophistication.

The exterior is in very good condition, while the inner cotton lining has stains (potentially removable). It measures 48 inches (121.9 cm) from sleeve-end to sleeve-end and has a height of 57 inches (144.8 cm).

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