Japanese Traditional Clothing

The Japanese people has a traditional dress that has been a topic of interest for a long time. They wear different types of kimonos for every and each occasion, they have for formal or casual. They are very fascinating on their traditional kind of clothes.The kimono and the yukata in Japan are the most two commonly worn clothes in the country. 

Kimono (kuh-moh-nuh)
The kimono is a full-length robe that is made of silk, this is worn by both women and men. Men have a black or brown coloured kimono and it is simple, while women have different designs of kimonos. When a woman is not married traditionally she wear a furisode (swinging sleeves), wich has long sleeves about 110cm in length. A woman chooses a style of kimono on various factors. Kimonos made of woolen fabric are worn more often in winter. A black kimono is worn by both men and women in a funeral. 

Yukata (yoo-kah-tah)
This is also part from the traditional dress. Yukata can be considered as a casual version of kimono. Generally people wear a yukata after a bath. It is meant to cool your body and it is made of cotton.

Nagajuban (naa-ga-JOO-ban)
This is worn underneath the kimono as it is a robe that takes a shape of kimono. Nagajuban are usually worn underneath because kimonos are usually made of silk, and they are different to clean so they avoid contact between silk and skin.The only part that is seen from the outside the main garment is the collar. The collar of the nagajuban is often covered or wrapped with a haneri for decorative and cleaniness.

Haori (HOU-ree)
This is a coat like, knee length garment and it is loose fitting. The haori was originally worn by men but nowadays, even women wears it. It is not heavy and generally it is worn to keep th kimono clean.

Haori himo (HOU-ree, HEE-moh)
It is a kind of tie-up, that is usually a woven string, which holds the haori together. the colour of this tie-up is usually white.

Hakama (ha-KAH-mah)
The hakama is an ankle skirt with wide-pleated. It has 5 pleats on front and 2 at the back in all. It is always worn on the kimono and it can b divided or undivided. Th hakama is usually worn around the waist with ribbons. In acient times the hakama was usually worn by Samurais so others cannot be able to see their footwork. Nowadays it is worn by both sexes but originally it was worn only by men.

Tabi (tah-bee)
They are traditional Japanese socks that are worn by both sexes. Generally they are ankle-high, and have a separation from the big toe to the other toes. The juka-tabi are often worn by workmen.

Zori (ZAWR-ee)
The zori is a major part from the traditional clothing and it is worn with a kimono. Zori are sandals that are described as slip ons or flip flops. They are made of leather or cloth and are usually worn in formal or informal occasions.

Obi (oh-bee, aw-bee)
It is worn with many traditional clothing, such as kimono. Obi is kind of sash that is worn by both sexes. This can hide several sashes that are worn beneath. Obi can be tied with various knots, that each and one of them have a different meaning. In early days they believed that knots keep evil spirits away. Obi was also worn as martial art uniform.

Obiage (oh-bee-ah-gee)
Obimakura is a pillow used to suppost the knot of the obi and obiagi is a piece of clothing that covers the obimakura. It shows the marital status of a woman, an unmarried woman always wear her obiagi visible to others and married woman wears it semi discretely.

Obijime (oh-bee-JEE-may)
It is a string which ties the knot on the obi. This can be made by different materials  such as silk, satin or can even be from a woven material. The obi is generally around 150-160 cm in length, with a different knot for different occastions.Obidome are deocrations that are placed over the obijime. 

Kanzashi (kaan-za-shee)
Kanzashi is usually worn by woman, it is kind of a hairpin that holds a hairdo in place. They change the colour of this hair ornament in accordance to the month or season. 

Japan are known for their highly-detailed work in clothing and it gives a woman's marital status and position in the society. Even small flaws in the arrangement or choice of clothing can be considered to be an insult or disrespect


Japanese Traditional Clothing. 2013. Japanese Traditional Clothing. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/japanese-traditional-clothing.html. [Accessed 21 May 2013].

The Influence Of Western Fashion To Japan

Westerners are being influenced from the Japanese fashion more these days. Gwen Stefani love Japanese fashion in fact she dresses her dancers with the Harajuku. Japan is not popular a lot with brands like Versace and Louis Vuitton yet but it is slowly being adopted as their fashion by more and more by teenagers and young women in the west.

There are various U.S. and European designers that are watching the trends in Japan especially the Shibuya and Harajuku districts of Tokyo. The Japanese are usually advanced of the trends and those trends tend to eventually find their way into the Western fashion. Japanese are very skilled when it comes to mixing and matching garments and they have a strong prominence on colour compared to the West's. 

A fact is that the major of the high end denim is made in Japan. The Japanese use a dye which makes the denim of good quality, only few fashion houses use it.

Japanese Fashions Influence on Western Style and Trends | Fashion, Beauty etcFashion, Beauty etc. 2013. Japanese Fashions Influence on Western Style and Trends | Fashion, Beauty etcFashion, Beauty etc. [ONLINE] Available at:http://fashionbeautyetc.com/japanese-fashions-influence-on-western-html/. [Accessed 21 May 2013].

Japanese Animation

Japanese cartoonists were experimenting with animation from early as 1914. Japanese cartoonists were influences by the west, they were producing serial newspaper comics. This was developed into a full length manga. Momotaro was the first world wide animation that did success in 1918. A lot of short films and shows came after, but the anime and manga fans were nearly everywhere and everyone have an obligation to one man, Osamu Tezuka.
Tezuka transformed into anime and manga. He had energetic and emotional characters. Hundreds of pages lasted his stories and they were told the story his active picture as well as his words. His characters were inspired from the Disney characters. In the anime/manga the eyes are the most noticeable as they are huge. This design is allowed for a whole range of emotion. The black and white anime Tetsuwam Atom that was published in 1958 or Astro Boy in English were the first anime that were seen regular anime to be have a formal set of characters. A robot boy was the point of attraction who has an atomic heart. He is rejected by his creator and sold to a circus. This robot boy only fights against evil for all the protection.

History of Anime in Japan. 2013. History of Anime in Japan. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.animesekai.net/history.html. [Accessed 20 May 2013].

Textile Arts of Japan

Bunka Shishu 

Often in English it is known as bunka, it is a form of Japanese embroidery and it was formed around the turn of the 20th century. The bunka artists uses a specialized needle and rayon threads to create a lot of detail on pictures that som are compared to oil paintings. Subjects that are common include people, living things; traditionally fish, and traditional Japanese scenes. Bunka is fragile not like other forms of embroidery and it is usually presented as an artwork.

Fukusa

This type of Japanese textile are used for gift-wrapping for purifying equipment during a Japanese tea ceremony. Fukusa are square or nearly always square pieces of lined fabric varying in size from about 9 inches to36 inches on a side.

Ise-katagami

This is a Japanese craft of making papers and stencils for colouring textiles. this is designed as a culture thing in japan.  

Kariyushi shirt

Kariyushi shirt means harmony or happiness. It is a style of dress shirt which originated in Okinawa. It is mainly worn in summer. mostly are short-sleeved, they are printed and collared. It is worn ax casual or informal wear or a dresswear.

Category:Textile arts of Japan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2013.Category:Textile arts of Japan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Textile_arts_of_Japan. [Accessed 20 May 2013].

Japanese Pop-Art

Pop art was a new rare occurrence that sprung up in Britian and U.S.A. This was during 1950's. Nowadays every form of art that in influenced by the mainstreamc culture, we now refer to it as pop art. Pop art from Japan would develop from the nations prominent experimental scene. Yayoi Kusama's work provided to the advancement of pop art itself. It affected many other artists such as Andy Warhol. Tadanori Yokoo in the mid-1960's was a graphic designer who would become one of the most strong pop artists and an international figure for Japanese pop art. he is well known for his creating artwork and his advertisements on pop culture, such as charges from The Beatles, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and more. Keiichi Tanaami was also an important pop artist at the time. Such as Speed Racer and Astro Boy were also iconic characters from Japanese manga and anime who become symbols for pop art. Takashi Murakami and his superflat movement was a pop artist who got influenced from the Japanese manga and anime.

Interesting Facts & Information: tourism, travel, culture, language, business, people. » Blog Archive » Japanese Pop Art. 2013. Interesting Facts & Information: tourism, travel, culture, language, business, people. » Blog Archive » Japanese Pop Art. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/japan/japanese-pop-art/article/Japan/-Japanese-Pop-Art/1397. [Accessed 20 May 2013].
Pop art - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2013. Pop art - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. [ONLINE] Available at:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_art#Japan. [Accessed 20 May 2013].

Japanese Art in Ceramics

Pottery in Japan has been practised for more than 7,000 years. The pottery making in Japan developed different traditions and these are recognized by Japanese archaeologists. Every piece of pottery had its own form and decorative motifs. Vessels for serving and consumption of food were formed from the collection of deep jar-shaped cooking vessels.Cord-marking was the basic decorative element, it is produced by pressing cords that are made of plant fibres into the leather-hard surface before firing in the bonfire.In some areas of Japan the upper parts of the vessels are highly decorated. Abstract designs in pottery became very practised images were almost uncommon. Vessels were often made in very large amount, as one can see in the huge pottery dumps in the site of Sannai Maruyama. 
From about 5000 BC in the Japanese archipelago pottery was also used to create clay figurines, both anthropomorphic and zoomorphic. Certain conclusions were the focus of figurine produce and use. Over 1000 figurine pieces at Shakado have been renewed. These figurines were made so as to be easy to be break into their elemental body parts and complete figurines are almost never discovered. There are various figures some have a female body and others look more masculine, there are some that look unisex as well. these figurines which suggest elaborated headdress, facial tattooing, and decorative clothing, indicating that bodily adornments was important to many Jamon societies. Some have bloated stomachs, and are thought to have played an important role in productivity rites. 
Body symbolism is more exposed through the proof for tooth filling from skulls scraped at sites such as Tsukumo and Yoshigo. Masks made of pottery often suggesting recognizable character traits; this is known from number of sites in the Japanese archipelago. Large amount of ear ornaments have been found at other sites.

Onians, J.O., 2004. The Art Atlas. 1st ed. Great Britain: Laurence King Publishing.

The Wassily Chair

The Wassily Chair was simple and structurally exposed compared to the other chairs in the 1920's. Not a lot of people liked the chair, the majority of the people never dreamed of using that chair. This chair was an abstract piece of art. 

This chair was manufactured in late 1920s by Thonet as Model B3. Kandinsky the artist had always like the Model B3 and therefore Breuer created more from that model for Kandinsky's office. Other designs from the Breuer's from 1920's were licensed to Standart-Möbel, Lengyel and Company from Berlin, but the Model B3 wasn't.

From this model there was a folding and a non-folding version as well, it is still available today.th first chairs were made by straps made of fabric; black, white or wire-mesh instead of leather. The Model B3 was re-released again in the 1960's by Gavina of Bologna, she released it as a Wassily Chair with leather instead of fabric. When it was released again it was really successful. 

The Model B3 today are all expired, and you can find a lot of manufactures of this chair. The Wassily Chair was recognized as a "Piece of Art" as it received an award of the Museum of Modern Art in 1968 and in 1982. 

The Wassily Chair By Marcel Breuer — Gentleman's Gazette. 2013. The Wassily Chair By Marcel Breuer — Gentleman's Gazette. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.gentlemansgazette.com/wassily-chair-model-b3-by-marcel-breuer/. [Accessed 17 May 2013].