This vibrant meisen kimono utilizes a blend of rayon and silk with metallic thread inserts, exemplifying the period's enthusiasm for synthetic materials and industrial innovation. The textile showcases an exuberant pattern combining shikishi (decorative square paper) motifs with botan (peony) blossoms set against a striking teal ground. The shikishi squares display intricate multicolored geometric patterns that appear almost pixelated or woven like miniature textiles, creating a complex visual texture that speaks to both traditional craft techniques and emerging modernist interests in pattern and repetition.
The botan or peony motifs carry deep symbolic significance in Japanese culture, representing honor, wealth, and masculine bravery, while also embodying feminine beauty and the ephemeral nature of life. These large, naturalistic white blooms with their delicate golden centers provide a striking counterpoint to the geometric precision of the shikishi squares, creating a dynamic interplay between organic and geometric forms. The bold teal background color demonstrates the influence of Art Deco's embrace of vivid, unconventional color palettes that departed from more subdued traditional schemes.
The detail images reveal the sophisticated construction, where individual colored threads create complex geometric patterns within each square, achieving an almost pointillistic effect that anticipates later developments in textile design. This combination of traditional motifs executed through modern materials and techniques represents the cultural synthesis that characterized Japanese design during this period of rapid modernization, bridging ancient symbolic traditions with contemporary aesthetic experimentation and technological advancement.
Measurements: 50 inches (127 cm) from sleeve-end to sleeve-end and stands at 59 inches (150 cm) in height.