Chichibu Meisen-kan in Saitama Prefecture
It’s no secret I’m a major fangirl when it comes to Jazz Age kimonos, and if you’ve been following Only In Japan, you’ll remember that fabulous exhibit at the Yayoi-Yumeji Museum that showcased Meisen silk kimonos with patterns influenced by modern art…
kitchy Western motifs…
and the sheer graphic exuberance that stood traditional kimono design on its head in the 1920s—1950s.
Meisen kimonos flaunted every rule, from using newly developed aniline dyes that produced colors not found in nature, to challenging the idea that seasonal elements are the only proper motifs for kimonos. These fabrics…
are prime examples of Meisen style, and they were made at a silk factory that is now home to the Meisen-kan museum in Chichibu. Let’s do a walk-through and see how it all began!
The first thing that sets Meisen silk apart from all kimono fabrics that went before is the distinctive—and highly prized—”blurry” outlines that come from dyeing the pattern into the thread before weaving it
This effect is the product of an innovative technique that allowed the silk factory to mass-produce large quantities of lively fabrics from lower-grade silk thread at a much more affordable cost. Suddenly, fashionable kimonos were available to more than just the super-wealthy.
The designs were cut into stencils…
then silkscreened onto the threads, one color at a time…
Here we can see what it looks like before it’s put on the loom and after it’s woven
Design samples hung to dry, waiting to go on the loom
Now the weaving begins…
…and we can see how the finished cloth takes on a new dimension as the crossthreads are added.
Some of the finished products are on display in the room at the end of the tour…
And as a foreigner who loves to wear kimonos—especially Meisen kimonos—I found this display of Barbies dressed in Meisen style both cheering and heartwarming!
Here’s where Chichibu is:
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The Chichibu Meisen Museum
Open: Every day
Hours: 9:00 – 16:00
Admission: Adults: ¥210, Children ¥100
To get to Chichibu Station from Tokyo, use the Japan Navigation phone app, plugging in your actual date and preferred arrival/departure time. Here’s where to get the app and how to use it.
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly Japanagram newsletter, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
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