Obi

Accession Number
2016/2.55

Title
Obi

Artist(s)
Japanese

Artist Nationality
Japanese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
mid- to late-20th century

Medium & Support
silk

Dimensions
130 in x 12 in (330.2 cm x 30.48 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Kazuko Miyake

Subject matter

This is a summer (Sha) fukuro obi in rokutsuu gara.

Fukuro Obi is double-layered  single sided obi in which two separately woven surfaces and back pieces of cloth are stitched together. This type of obi is typically only worn at weddings or other formal occasions. Ro and Sha textiles, also called usumono, are thin, translucent fabrics used for summer kimonos. The main difference between Ro and Sha is how they are woven.

Gara refers to the orientation, arrangement, and surface area of the patterns and pertains to a specific trend and obi tying style. The Rokutsuu gara type derives from a specific tying style, the Otaiko musubi.  The areas of the obi that are visible in this style are patterned while the parts that are obscured are left blank. In terms of surface area, roughly sixty percent is patterned while forty percent is left blank.



Physical Description

Dark cyan fukuro (single-sided) Sha obi with interwoven gold and silver (floral/foliage?) motif patterning.



Primary Object Classification
Costume and Costume Accessories

Primary Object Type
obi

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
gold thread
obis
repeats
silver thread
summer (season)

& Author Notes

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