loud

not all japanese patterns were as bold as we've seen. many were smaller, repeated, pastels.... but still they had symbolic meanings--not only the patterns themselves, but also everything from sleeve lengths to amount and colors of layers, etc. once again the west was delighted to adopt colors that were new to the victorians, and once again they adopted them sans symbology, but that didn't diminish the love for them a bit.

Once upon a time, an old man was walking around the temple courtyard. He was stopped by something in the air; he looked up and realized a large cherry blossom tree. He looked closer, and discovered several areas on the leaves were eaten by insects. He was impressed by the random patterns nature made... The name of the temple was Shiroko Kannon-ji, located in Ise region (current Suzuka City area in Mie prefecture), and this small incident in the courtyard took place more than 1300 years ago. There are various theories to the origin of Japanese stenciling, and the exact details are unknown, yet I tend to like this story. Great discovery can occur from something as simple as taking a walk in the garden! Incidentally, about four stencil shops already existed in the Enreki time (782-806) according to the documents kept in the same temple. 1

Japa- nese Kimo- no pat- terns can sig- nify the kimono’s rank in formality by how wide spread or pervasive the pattern is as well as the kimono color. Three distinct categories of Japanese kimono which define degrees of formality are, Komon, Tsukesage, and Homongi. The Komon by virtue of the wide spread stenciled or painted repeat patterns which cover the entire kimono is at the lowest most informal level of formality. Komon dyeing, which has the meaning of "small-figured designs," has a tradition of about 400 years. It started as a method of transferring the family crest to the "Kamishimo," the ceremonial attire of the warrior class. During the Edo Period, Komon dyeing gradually spread among the people in general. This Komon dyeing is a traditional technique of high quality that makes use of stencils cut in intricate patterns.

The Tsu- kes- age is next in rank to the Hom- ongi kimo- no. The tsukesage kimono can be worn by both married and single women to both formal and informal gatherings. For formal occasions, a crest should be applied to the back seam at the top. Tsukesage kimono have designs dyed from the hemline in the front and back which travel to the top of the shoulders. Designs on the sleeves also travel upward. The Homongi pattern because of its asymmetrical patterning which continues without a break across the side seams to the back hem is the highest level of formality Homongi kimono are made from bolts of silk, which are sewn up into the finished length, then hand painted, taken apart, dyed, and then resewed. 2

just as shadows and reflec- tions hadn't occurred to japanese artists, colorful prints hadn't, apparently, occurred to western designers. each had a long history in their own cultures; even perspective went back to the renaissance. japanese prints were collected in books and offered for use as kimono fabric, and also colored paper (sometimes for origami), screens, and more. in each culture, what they hadn't done before was so embraced as to be ubiquitous, emphatic, and each gained meaning by what they came to signify in their new societies.

green green green

GREEN

The sky was apple-green,
The sky was

green wine held up in the sun,
The moon was a golden petal between.

She opened her eyes, and green
They shone, clear like flowers undone,
For the first time, now for the first time seen.

d h lawrence

(d h lawrence was also considered
an imagist poet.)

hungary for more?

Painter, graphic artist and industrial designer, Géza Faragó's richness of ideas, and posters full of original humor in Art Nouveau, had a great influence on the development of Hungarian posters.

One rather interesting episode in the history of Hungarian industrial culture is the fortuitous meeting between the United Lamp and Electric Co (trade name: Tungsram) founded in 1872, and Faragó was one of the most popular Hungarian poster artists at the turn of the century. It was a success story that established a lasting reputation for the factory and artist alike.

An invention by Ferenc Hanaman, engineer, and his associate, Sándor Juszt, the tungsten lamp emitted 3.5 times the amount of light, with the same consumption of power, than its predecessor the carbon filament lamp.The poster designer compares the brilliance of the light bulb to the brilliance of sunshine: the graceful female figure looking into the sunlight shades her eyes with delicate hands. 1

Faragó's early career as a textile designer is evident in this decor- atively-patterned poster promoting men's and women's fashions at Budapest's then-elegant Golya department store (golya is the Hungarian word for stork).

Géza Faragó was a pupil of Mucha and Colarossi in Paris in 1898. On his return to Hungary, his works were exhibited in 1900. After another stay of some years in Paris, he became a pupil of Adolf Fényes in Szolnok, and Béla Iványi Grünwald in Kecskemét, then settled down in Budapest around 1905.

He designed stage sceneries and cartoons. His posters were exhibited in Berlin in 1914. From 1910 to 1915 he was a stage designer at Király Theatre, at the Operetta Theatre, Budapest, and later at UFA Studio. "Hungarian Wedding", a ballet, was on in London for a year. His most famous posters include "Gottschlig Reem", "Törley Champagne" (1909), "Kerpel Hand Moisterer" (1910). His works were exhibited in 1910, 1923 and 1928. "Evening by the Danube", "Early Moonshine", "Morning" and "Peasant Girl in Seelfeld" are in the collection of the Hungarian National Gallery.He specialized in costume design, working at theaters in Budapest and Vienna, and many of his paintings hang in the Hungarian National Gallery.