A Beautifully Pieced Indigo Cotton Coat: Staggered Symmetry in Kasuri

ca. mid twentieth century
43" x 48", 109 cm x 122 cm

This is extraordinarily beautiful.  It is a long jacket that is hand sewn from vertically arranged indigo dyed cotton rectangles, more than half of which are a variety of kasuri or ikat woven fragments, about twenty in all.

Aside from the obvious, immediate, visual appeal, what is wonderful about this coat is that the checkerboard-like arrangement of identical-sized fragments is slightly off-kilter, producing a gently rhythmic visual effect.

The coat is in fine, slightly worn condition, but over all it is still bright and crisp, with all its parts very much intact.

It is lined in cotton, too, using "recycled" pieces, some of which have a white-on-dark shadow image.  Note the red, circular stain to the coat's lining.

A fabulous thing from old, rural Japan.  Very recommended.