This kimono exhibition transcends borders and eras

What may be found extraordinary in a kimono is perhaps the way this garment, which may seem so simple in appearance and construction, imparts such a solemn bearing. But how is this garment really built? Where is he from ? And above all, how did this piece cross centuries, countries and cultures so well? This is what the “Kimono” exhibition at the Musée du Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac proposes to explore, from 22 November 2022 to 28 May 2023.

Where does the kimono come from and what characterizes it?

Worn by samurai schools and kabuki actors as much as by pop stars and on international catwalks, the kimono is said to have appeared more than a thousand years ago. It consists of seven strips (large pieces of fabric) that together form a characteristic T, traditionally made from hemp, nettle or even mulberry silk.

It becomes the beginning of the Edo period (1603-1868) the traditional dress par excellence, worn by Japanese of all sexes and all social classes. As kabuki actors become fashion icons, the kimono is also reinventing itself as a tool of distinction.

Whether it be the military nobility, the imperial aristocracy, or the merchant bourgeoisie, the elegant people compete in motifs, sea, land and sky according to the country’s animistic beliefs. The goal: that the kimono is as beautiful worn as it is in 2D when hung in the living room as a decoration.

From Japan to the West, gazes crossed on the kimono

Beginning in the 17th century, the West began to seize it, diverting it like an exotic dressing gown. It was from the 1850s onwards that the kimono really became popular there, in keeping with the orientalism in vogue in the 19th century. In the 20th century, European designers no longer took possession of it as a disguise or fantastic travel souvenir, but as a playground and artistic expression, like Jean Paul Gaultier, John Galliano or Alexander McQueen. This is what this exhibition retraces, conceived by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and now presented in Paris.

Fashion enthusiasts will remember the similar exhibition at the Guimet National Museum of Asian Arts in 2017. The Parisian institution then brought together 50 kimonos from the famous Matsuzakaya collection (clothing house founded in 1611, which became a department store in 1910) which houses nearly 10,000 of them in the Nagoya Municipal Museum. While it did include some contemporary creations at the end of the show, this exhibition event gave pride of place to more traditional designs that were girded by rolling up the obi, a belt 35 centimeters wide and 4 to 5 meters long. This acts almost like a corset that ensures a posture worthy of a kimono.

Greater public, this new “Kimono” exhibition at the Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac museum promises to transcend eras, categories and borders.

Front page photo credit: YouTube screenshot.