stealing magnolias

i haven't seen this before, a nearly exact example of copying (minus the bird), though i suspect that kawarazaki has done it before -- haven't really looked carefully at all of his work, but a swift glance suggested to me that he had.

I've been wondering how it is that with all of these won- derful kimono patterns, one never sees two alike; it seems true but i'm still looking.

nor have i yet found anything to read about this kind of thing, but maybe i just haven't hit on the right search yet.




in any case, i'd suggest 'inspired' is a better word than 'stole' when talking about these astonishingly beautiful windows from tiffany's laurelton hall estate, burned in 1957.

they are part of a new exhibition at the metro- politan museum of art in new york: "Louis Comfort Tiffany and Laurelton Hall: An Artist's Country Estate" continues through May 20, 2007.

(upper right, keiren imao; upper right, kawarazaki shodo. the first is thought to have been done ca. 1885. there's no date on the second but the artist was born in 1889!)