Japanese design

What Do Giorgio Armani and Alex Kerr Have in Common?

“Instead Armani’s interiors possess the formal grace of a Japanese ryokan, only darker in tone and significantly more luxurious.”
-Mitchell Owens in Architectural Digest March 2012

While working on my sayonara series of posts, I had photos of fashion designer Giorgio Armani’s ski chalet in Switzerland from the March issue of Architectural Digest queued up for use. The design featured some tansu used in dramatic ways, but something about the entire home struck a chord with me and I decided to set it aside until I could figure out what it was. It came to me in that magic way ideas can just germinate in a passive mind in a calm moment, that the home felt Japanese in more ways than just the few pieces of furniture. It reminded me of a similar spread on author and Japanologist Alex Kerr’s famous renovation – or more accurately rescue and restoration – of an old Japanese home, also featured in AD, but about ten years ago.

Since then I have managed to read the article accompanying the Armani photos and it makes no bones about the parallel to Japanese design. Armani’s La Punt, Switzerland winter getaway is a restored 17th century barn that has been converted into a sleekly modern ski home, in a very Japanese vernacular. It is not surprising that the gleaming mahogany walls, floors and beams and streamlined furniture coupled with Japanese antiques, including half of a tansu hiding behind the sofa in the photo below, in the soaring cavernous space, remind me of…

…Alex Kerr’s restored 18th century farmhouse in the Iya Valley. In addition to writing Lost Japan and Dogs and Demons, Kerr has become one of the standard bearers in the movement to preserve Japan’s vanishing arts, culture and traditional lifestyle in the face of globalization and modernization.

Beamed details and grid-like wall pattern around the hearth at Armani’s…

…beamed details and grid-like built-ins around the hearth at Kerr’s.

Upstairs at Armani’s place, a pair of fraternal twin tansu stand guard on either side of the window in the bedroom.

Upstairs at Alex Kerr’s there are at least a quintuplet of tansu siblings, including the kaidan tansu on the left and assorted mizuya tansu around the room.

Simple beds, low to the ground and fireplaces with little adornment are common…

…at both homes.

I think Kerr’s place is more romantic, but I am sure Armani’s is more comfy!

Image credits: Giorgio Armani’s home in Architectural Digest March 2012, photo credits: Roger Davies, Alex Kerr’s home in Architectural Digest August 2002, photo credits: Erhard Pfeiffer

Jun 8, 2012 By tokyojinja in Books, Movies & TV, Furniture, Interior Design Tags: Alex Kerr, Giorgio Armani, japanese antiques, Japanese design, Japanese furniture, tansu

ZAK + FOX…New Japanese Inspired Textiles and My First Real Giveaway

An object becomes so much more interesting when a little bit of history is revealed.
– Zak Profera

Like “You had me at hello” in Jerry Maguire, Zak Profera’s new textile line ZAK + FOX had me at the quote above and the photo below. Printed on Belgian linen using water-based inks, Profera has created a versatile new line of interiors fabrics with global inspiration. In particular, a few of the patterns have their roots in Japanese symbols and motifs, which I find particularly appealing. In celebration of his launch, Zak is offering the long bolster pillow on the left in the photo below as my first official giveaway. Entering is easy – the details can be found at the end of this post.

JINGASA

The pillow is made of Jingasa fabric in the snow colorway and reads to me as a modern stylized form of karakusa, the scrolling arabesque vine pattern seen over and over again in Japanese decorative arts. The word jingasa refers to the iron helmets that were used by Edo period soldiers and I managed to find an image of one, complete with karakusa pattern, even before reading Zak’s own personal inspiration for it.

According to Zak, Jingasa “is an abstract, all over composition that was inspired by a crest seen on an antique helmet. I think I was romanced by the idea of some lone wanderer, so in a way the motif could be seen as marking points on a map or a trail to follow. The blade-style point gives it a bit of a masculine edge and removes it from just feeling like a bunch of polka dots, though I wanted to keep an “artist’s hand” in the pattern by using watery line-work and giving it an inky tone-on-tone effect.”

MATSU

Next up is his Matsu pattern which is a classic interpretation of pine, or in this case matsukawa bishi, pine bark. This stylized version of pine is seen everywhere, from kamon…

…to tsuba (sword guards).

Zak “loves the simplicity of the pine bark motif and wanted to use it in a way that felt modern and different. I spotted a kimono with a dense repeat of flowers that started at the shoulders and drifted downward in an airy pattern; with this concept in mind, “Matsu” became an energetic pattern with an almost ombre-like effect to it. Some have told me it feels a bit like snakeskin (and I agree) but I think the minimalistic nature of the motif keeps it timeless and not trendy.”

TAKIGAWA

Takigawa translates to “waterfall and river” or more loosely as “rapids,” an apt name for this asymmetric stripe. For me, it is the least literal in its Japanese influence and instead reminds me of an antique Indian dhurrie rug.

Takigawa is Profera’s “version of the traditional stripe and uses a style of repeat seen in many Japanese textiles. I wanted to simplify the pattern by keeping the natural linen exposed—it gives it a raw edge that feels untouched, and at the same time it’s super modern. Depending on the color selected, it can feel tailored or relaxed — a quality that I love. I’ve seen it in a few different colors now as I work with other designers to create custom colors for projects and it’s definitely one of the most versatile patterns in the collection; it works just as well in a beach house as it does in a New York City loft.” Personally, I think the exact same thing can be said about a dhurrie rug too!

I can’t resist showing this photo from ZAK + FOX’s beautiful photo shoot at Temple Court in New York City.

An amazing 1883 building that has fallen into the very best kind of decay (original details protected for decades by ugly drywall) Temple Court has become the stuff of urban legend and high-end modeling jobs and is supposedly going to be restored as a hotel. Right now it would make the perfect interior setting for filming Ransom Riggs’ Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. For more on Temple Court, there is a wonderful article in The New York Times.

KATAGAMI

His Katagami fabric is a bit of a pun, considering that katagami stencils are used to make Japanese textiles. Is Katagami made with a katagami? No, but fun thinking about it in a loop.

In writing about his inspiration, Profera “became totally infatuated with these stencils, not necessarily the “traditional” ones with recognizable patterns but more so by the abstract, almost tribal patterns that felt a bit unplaceable — not quite bullet-point “Japanese”. This pattern uses one of the more unique antique stencils I stumbled upon, though quite edited with selections changed and redrawn to feel more composed and harmonious.”

His description reminded me of the unusual stencils in this amazing interior by Steven Gambrel, shown here before.

While I love all the patterns, my personal favorites are Jingasa and Takigawa in the plum colorway. Those of you who know me can’t possibly be surprised by that.

Pillows or cushion to contrast with my Bennison floral in the front entry at the beach?

And for all you Japanese motif junkies out there I have been meaning to mention Snow, Wave, Pine: Traditional Patterns in Japanese Design for ages. It is a beautiful tome, cataloging patterns by category and illustrating them with examples of the finest decorative arts.

There are also six other patterns – Volubilis, Plus, Karun, Palma, Nimrud, and Postage – in numerous colors in the new ZAK + FOX line, all well worth checking out. Which brings us back to the fun part…the giveaway!

THE GIVEAWAY

You can be the owner of this lovely 11 x 22 inch feather and down filled bolster made of Jingasa fabric in the snow colorway. The pillow is that wonderful long shape that looks perfect in a grouping on a couch, as a lumbar pillow on an armchair or anchoring bed pillows.

As for the details – it is easy. Simply leave a comment on my post telling me which is your favorite pattern (or frankly, any comment) and then click over to the ZAK + FOX website and join Zak’s mailing list (he promises not to barrage you with emails) by entering your email address in the field in the upper right corner of the home page. We will take entries for a week, until 6pm EST, Wednesday, March 28. One entry per person, although I am tempted to beg someone to enter for me. So unfair that in good sportsmanship I cannot enter myself!!

Mar 22, 2012 By tokyojinja in Books, Movies & TV, Design Motif, Interior Design, Textiles Tags: fabric, giveaway, interior design, Japanese design, Japanese inspired textiles, jingasa, karakusa, katagami, linen, matsu, pillows, takigawa, textile design, ZAK + FOX

Artist Spotlight…An Impressionist Feast of Fans

Japanese fans, bibelots and robes would only come alive in private encounters. They were props for dressing up, role-playing, the sensuous reimagining of self.

-Edmund de Waal, The Hare With Amber Eyes

There were so many Impressionist paintings in The Hare With Amber Eyes that I didn’t have space to mention in my last post, in particular La Japonaise, a portrait of Claude Monet’s first wife Camille dressed in an elaborate kimono-esque style robe decorated with a scary samurai drawing his sword and elaborate gold embroidery. But the key accessory (or should we say accessories in this case) is the quintessential icon of both Japan and the 19th century female world – the fan. Reading my earlier posts on Japonisme and Impressionism here, here and here yields many more fans and Japanese style robes and is a must if this post intrigues you, as some of the very best examples can be found there.

Claude Monet - La Japonaise (Camille Monet in Japanese Costume, 1876 — La Japonaise (Camille Monet in Japanese Costume)

Painted only a few years before, Eduoard Manet’s Portrait of Nina Callias also features a fan wall and a boldly coquettish subject.

Edouard Manet - Woman with FansPortrait of Nina de Callias, 1873 — Woman With Fans, Portrait of Nina de Callias

Olga Boznanska’s subject seems introspective, wearing a simple white robe and holding a single fan.

1889 Olga Boznanska -Japonka via art-magique — Japonka

Degas gives a fan to one of his dancers.

Degas, Dancer with a Fan 1879 — Dancer with a Fan

Renoir’s girl is sweet and innocent, not seductive or flirty…

Pierre-Auguste Renoir %22A Girl with a Fan,%22 c. 1879-80 — A Girl with a Fan

…nor is Pissarro’s.

Pissarro, Jeanne Holding a Fan — Jeanne Holding a Fan

Fans can be the subject themselves as in this painting Still Life with Chinese Vase and Fan. Ironically the vase is not Chinese at all, but instead looks to me to be a piece of Japanese Seto porcelain. The plate next to it is clearly Imari.

M. Puttner, Still Life with Chinese Vase and Fan — Still Life with Chinese Vase and Fan

And another still life with a European pitcher.

Henri Saintin, Still Life with Oriental Fan 19th century — Still Life with Oriental Fan

A modern-day version of a fan room, I am loving this pretty bedroom. It would be easy to do something like this with shrine sale finds.

All of which brings me around full circle, thinking about the post I wrote at New Years – We Are the New Victorians – and one with a similar theme by Courtney at Style Court, featuring an exhibition I wish I could go see! The Cult of Beauty: The Victorian Avant-Garde,1860–1900 runs from February 18, 2012 – June 17, 2012 at the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco and “is the first major exhibition to explore the unconventional creativity of the British Aesthetic Movement, tracing the evolution of this movement from a small circle of progressive artists and poets, through the achievements of innovative painters and architects, to its broad impact on fashion and the middle-class home. The superb artworks on view encompass the manifold forms of Victorian material culture: the traditional high art of painting, fashionable trends in architecture and interior decoration, handmade and manufactured furnishings for the “artistic” home, art photography and the new modes of dress.”

Once again all my San Francisco friends, please go enjoy for me!

Image Credits: 1. via Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 2. via Musée D’Orsay, 3. via Wikimedia, 4. via WikiPaintings, 5. via WikiPaintings, 6. via Artnet, 7. via Pinterest, 8. via Little Emma English Home

Mar 5, 2012 By tokyojinja in Artist Spotlight, Books, Movies & TV, Interior Design Tags: Claude Monet, Degas, fans, Impressionism, Japanese design, Japonisme, Legion of Honor Museum, Manet, Olga Boznanska, Pissarro, Renoir

Selective Perception…Maekake at the Heiwajima Antiques Fair and Kawagoe Shrine Sale

I am having another round of selective perception. Do you know the feeling when you notice something once and then next thing you know it is just everywhere? That has been the case with vintage Japanese maekake, the heavy cotton aprons, usually dark indigo in color, historically worn by staff at small manufacturers and breweries. These days they are retro-chic with the young set, being worn by staff at cool izakayas (simple food and bar restaurants). They have almost a denim feel and the waist ties are a thick woven double-sided cotton, often bright orange. Their simple but strong graphics caught my eye again and again at the Heiwajima Antiques Fair last week.

Many are around the fifty year old mark. You can often tell more specifically by the old-fashioned telephone numbers or styles of writing.

One idea on how to reuse the maekake, besides the obvious original intention, is to turn them into visually graphic pillows like these in Paul Ludick’s living room made from simple kamon (japanese crests) banners.

But the best idea by far is one I don’t have a photo of. Aaargh! Much to my chagrin, I was too busy talking to a lovely gentleman at the fair about his handmade maekake tote bag that I forgot to take a photo. (Hmmm….seem to be doing a lot of that lately). Anyway, he (or actually his wife) had sewn a bag out of a vintage apron and it was great looking. The zipper pocket in this one got me thinking about making one for myself – perfect for a cellphone or a couple of bucks (or should I say yen?). I didn’t end up buying any but went home stewing on the idea.

A few days later the Kawagoe market was full of aprons too.

I found a fabulous and unusually colored faded green one too, but another young woman browsing seemed to want it so desperately that I gave it to her. I found more joy in her happiness than I would have had in purchasing it.

My favorite dealer was wearing one exactly as it should be worn! I noticed other dealers wearing the sturdy aprons too.

So if fate was surrounding me with aprons, then I was clearly meant to buy one. I found a really cute small one with an outside pocket and a great design. I am pretty sure it is from a sake brewery.

Stay tuned to see the finished project!

Speaking of indigo bags, my friend Jane Farrell has been sewing absolutely beautiful patchwork and sashiko totes. I am going to try to have her work for sale sometime soon!

And speaking of selective perception, the aprons are not the only things that have been clubbing me over the head. Remember those great vintage shoyu (soy sauce) bottles I just wrote about? I had never particularly noticed them before either, yet I saw them everywhere at the Oedo fair with Peri Wolfman and also at Heiwajima. Definitely different bottles and different dealers too!

Continuing off the topic, but still kinda on it, hop over to the post I wrote this summer about Wedgwood jasperware cheese keepers. Had a huge spate of selective perception there too so I added a big addendum to the post!

Image credits: all photos mine with the exception of the Elle Decor December 2006, photo credit: William Waldron, and Jane Farrell bags courtesy of the artist.

Sep 29, 2011 By tokyojinja in Antique Shows, Glass, Housewares, Shrine Sales and Flea Markets, Textiles Tags: aprons, indigo, japanese antiques, Japanese design, Jasperware, maekake, pillows, textiles, tote bag, vintage, vintage glass, Wedgwood

Japanese-Inspired Fabric Follow-Up…Katsugi, Kiku, Kasumi, Kaba Kaba, Katana and More

In response to my post in April about R.P. Miller’s new textile line, a reader from Vienna, Austria wrote, “Love this post – and it just so happens that I am looking for Japanese-inspired upholstery fabric – I found a delightful Schumacher fabric called “Katsugi” that I really enjoy because of its rich colors and organic, imperfect design. Can you recommend any other lines?” So I thought I’d do a quick although not necessarily comprehensive round-up of some of the fabrics I think she might like.

For everyone else, I’ll start with the popular Schumacher linen and cotton blend Katsugi that she mentions, which comes in five colorways.

Don’t be deceived by these swatches. The surprise about Katsugi, and often many other fabrics viewed only in photos, is the scale. If you are imagining the circular patterns are about the size of an apple or the pomegranate they resemble, then you are incorrect. They are actually unexpectedly large. Designer Tom Scheerer has used this fabric to great effect in numerous projects.

Designer Suzanne Tucker makes a similar, although smaller in scale pattern called Kiku, which means chrysanthemum in Japanese. According to her website, the pattern is reinterpreted from a 19th century Japanese futon cover, with stylized chrysanthemum and lotus roundels and interlocking arabesques on a heavy linen ground.

By the way, there are 11 meters of it available in the sapphire blue on eBay right now for a fantastic price.

I don’t believe Martyn Lawrence-Bullard’s Kaba Kaba is based on Japanese textiles, but it looks like an elongated version of shippo tsunagi, also known as linked circles or seven treasures pattern. It also looks as if it was made with a traditional paste resist dye technique, even though it is not.

Compare it to this 19th century shibori (tie-dyed) yukata (cotton kimono).

For a sense of scale, you can see it on the pillow here, with two other great fabrics from his line.

As many of you know, I am a total Bennison junkie and have been using their floral linens in my beach house. While those patterns are their most famous, they also make a number of fabrics based on the karakusa (arabesque vine) pattern. Their “Kasumi” comes small, medium and large in numerous colorways. Unfortunately, none of the photos show the difference in scale, but it is dramatic, with the smallest size being a very fine subtle pattern and the extra-large size making a bold graphic statement.

The easiest way to show karakusa patterns is on Japanese porcelain, but it can be found in almost all the decorative arts.

For a quick and easy dose of karakusa-style fabric, one of my favorite home bedding brands, Pine Cone Hill, has a full line of products in their “Scramble” pattern, from duvets to dust ruffles to table napkins, all in a wide variety of colors.

Annie Selke has also issued Scramble as a fabric by the yard available at Calico Corners in five colorways. Here she has used it to upholster chairs in a Cape Cod dining room.

Lisa Fine’s Maharab, shown here in the indigo colorway, and on some cushions that actually look like old-fashioned Japanese futon, is not actually Japanese inspired.

But while the individual motifs are Indian inspired, the overall pattern reminds me of a typical style of Japanese fabric in which multiple stencils are used to make an overlapping collage like pattern. This fabric is a close-up from a mid-19th century futon cover, made with a rice paste resist method.

Asa no ha, or hemp pattern, is one of the most classic Japanese patterns there is. Ironically, for all that it is so ancient, it looks so modern. Here is it on an early 20th century yukata.

For a truly mod version of asa no ha, look no further that Kelly Wearstler’s fabric line for Groundworks in the Katana pattern, which takes the motif and stretches it to great dynamic effect.

Like some of the other fabrics in the post, the scale is surprisingly large.

Vanderhurd makes an amazing hand-embroidered linen in a hemp pattern called “Grande Etoile,” which comes in numerous colors, not all of which are pictured here, as well as a smaller version called “Petite Etoile.”

RP Miller’s new hemp pattern fabric has the unusual name of “1509 EB.” I imagine there must be a story behind that somewhere…

Thanks to the lovely Ariel at Hollywood at Home, I have gotten my hands on some samples from that new line, including a few I did not mention in the last post, such as the large chrysanthemum pattern Mrs. Burnside, the small star pattern Tanabata Night Sky and the delicate and leafy Weymouth place shown here in wheat ind indigo.

The wheat colors were a great surprise, very subtle and satisfying for those who like to work with neutrals.

Chiyo’s Pond, the pattern that looks like flowing water and petals reminds me of typical Okinawan bingata stenciled fabrics.

But my favorite is still the very unusual woodblock print inspired Le Witt Loom. In the wheat colorway if has a faux bois effect while in the indigo and white it is crisp and clean. I can’t think of anything else like it on the market.

For more photos and information on that pattern and the rest of RP Miller’s new line, see my previous post R. P. Miller…New Japanese Inspired Fabrics From Rodman Primack Debut at Hollywood at Home.

All of the photos of antique Japanese textiles came from what looks to be a fantatsic website called narablog, which features wonderful antique textiles, mainly Japanese, many for sale. I really recommend you take a look! Another fabulous resource for antique Japanese textiles is Sri Threads.

Photo credits for the three Tom Scheerer photos are: 1. Simon Upton, 2. William Waldron, 3. Eric Bowman. Annie Selke dining room from House Beautiful February 2009, photo credit: John Kernick. Kelly Wearstler image via decorpad.

May 15, 2011 By tokyojinja in Interior Design, Textiles Tags: Bennison, Japanese design, Kelly Wearstler, Lisa Fine, Martyn Lawrence-Bullard, Rodman Primack, RP Miller, Suzanne Tucker, textiles, Tom Scheerer

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