A Rustic Thickly Textured Obi: Purples
ca. mid twentieth century
96" x 5 1/2", 244 cm x 14 cm
Although at first glance you may assume that this beautifully textured, rustic obi is woven from rags or is sakiori, a closer look shows us that this is woven from thickly spun yarns and does not use a rag weft yarn--the yarns used to feed the weft of this obi appear to be some kind of bast, perhaps hemp.
Still, it is beautiful. The color is soft and rich and the condition is fair-to-good. What is striking about this rustic obi is its wonderful texture and the play between the texture and the dyed colors, a repeat of purple-ish blue, a reddish-brown and white. Along one side of the obi is a line of machine stitching done in an orange, cotton thread.
The weft yarns are soft and thick, the obi is light in the hand.
