Kimono and the Colors of Japan

This distinctive volume reveals a unique antique kimono collection through various delicate Japanese colours and their use in kimono. The main focus of this book is on the colours of kimono and obi, not their construction or how to wear them. Colours such as „coconut brown,“ „horizon blue,“ „cupid pink,“ and „lamp black“ suggest the ways in which Japanese textile artists perceive colours. The pictures on every page are in glorious colour to show the delicate colour combination of each kimono.

According to Katsumi Yumioka, the collector of the antique kimonos presented in this book: „We organized the kimono and obi (sash) according to what I like to call ‘Japanese Kokoro no Iro’ – the colours of the Japanese heart. Each category presents an example of how Japanese people understand individual colours and what the colours themselves express or signify.“ With the knowledge of both Western and Japanese traditional fashion cultures, Yumioka presents and explains his collection to the general reader in an easily accessible way.