© Kyoichi Tsuzuki, BORO AOMORI, 2018. Courtesy of the artist and Amuse Museum, Chuzaburo Tanaka Collection

An exhibition “Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics” will be held at Japan Society Gallery from March 6th to June 14th, 2020.

ADVERTISEMENT

Boro (“rags” or “tatters”) are patchwork textiles hand-pieced by peasants in Japan in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The inability to cultivate cotton in the northern climate of Tohoku necessitated the practice of stitching remnants of used fabric into utilitarian items, including blankets, coats and mittens. These hard-used garments – reworked over generations – express essential principles of Japanese ethics and aesthetics, such as an appreciation for distinguished imperfections and the avoidance of waste.

For the first time in the U.S., this exhibition assembles over 50 archival pieces from the personal collection of folklorist and cultural anthropologist Chuzaburo Tanaka (1933–2013) presented alongside new portraits by editor-photographer Kyoichi Tsuzuki, designs by pioneers of Japanese avant-garde fashion Rei Kawakubo, Issey Miyake, Yohji Yamamoto, and textile-based works by Susan Cianciolo and Christina Kim – part of a generation of contemporary artists influenced by the aesthetics and ethics of mending, patchwork, and re-use.

Boro Textiles: Sustainable Aesthetics
Date: March 6th – June 14th, 2020
Open: 12:00-19:00 (Friday till 21:00, Saturday and Sunday till 17:00)
Closed on Monday
Place: Japan Society Gallery
Address: 333 East 47th Street, New York, NY 10017
Admissions: Adult $12, Students and seniors $10
Tel: +1 212 832 1155
https://www.japansociety.org

※Japan Society Gallery will be closed from March 16th to 30th, 2020 as a preventive measure against the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19).