Clothing will always remain a way to present oneself, it is a consequence of one’s identity. Hence women’s rights and mentalities in the western world changed simultaneously with the arrival of japonism in fashion. We could even ask ourselves if the difference of vision from Japan did not favorised, or even provoked these changes.
Indeed we can highlight the access to education for women at the end of the 19th century, as well as the increaze of women workers, all the more with the first world war but also the first feminist movements.
Moreover, in 1900 at the international exposition in Paris, the play « the Geisha and the knight » was very appreciated and the actrice named Sadda Yaco, started appearing in Vogue Magazine wearing a kimono, making her the main focus of Paris press and people. Eventually european were mesmerized by this culture.
As an example we can also concentrate on Madeleine Vionnet’s designs.
As a French fashion designer and couturier, she is remembered for liberating women’s bodies through her clothes (alongside Coco Chanel). Even if she was more inspired by antiquity shapes and draperies we can still spot some form of Japanese kimono as she began creating dresses that were focused on a kimono’s structure in the late 1910s. She favorised a minimalist approach by abandoning the traditional practice of tailoring body-fitted pieces from numerous and complex pattern pieces. In fact, all her dresses had no buttons or any kind of opening (they alll had to be put on by the head hole) only stiches made the garment fit: this reminds us of the construction of kimono.
Vionnet created clothes that flowed over the body from pieces cut along straight lines. She is known for pioneering the idea of the bias cut, which was partly based on the rectangular cut of the kimono. Bias cut fabric stretches as it hangs and clings to the body, draping beautifully, and creating an ethereal rippling effect as the wearer moves. Before it was mainly used for collar or other detaisl but never as the « main piece » of a garment.
As a matter of fact, when the world of fashion entered the 20th century, with the rejection of the traditional corset, Japanese influences became deeper and settled into the design of clothes for good.
First, as in the traditional Japanese kimono, the neckline was lowered to reveal the neck (viewed as an erotic part of the body in Japan), and sleeves were widened to allow for easy draping. The contrast between corset and blouse containing the woman’s movement and the kimono attributes enabling any movements is huge. When kimonos first arrived in europe, they were seen as « appartment »clothes. As a matter of fact, beginning in the 1880s, women’s magazines like Harper’s Bazaar were promoting “Japanese matinees” and dressing gowns of Japanese silk from Liberty and Company of London. It was only until the turn of the century when the word “kimono” came into use. However it is important to highlight that the mundain lives of women in europe contrasted with the housewife experience of most of japanese women especially before the opening of Japan. Thus, I think it was a necessity for european fashion designers to insert only, some assets of the kimono in their designs otherwise japan’s designs might never have grown in Europe.
Moreover; society had to accept that women wanted to be more comfortable in their clothes and sometimes reveal part of their bodies they did not use to show.
After a long period of national isolation, in 1868, Japan opened up to the rest of the world and the promotion of trade became its main preoccupation. Following the opening of the Port of Yokohama in 1859, silk became a major export.
Therefore, during the 19th century, the Japanese influence on European fashion was mainly limited to textile production techniques and the use of motifs associated with Japan (plants, birds or sea waves, along with their asymmetrical presentation). Throughout the world, the interest in Japan grew during the 1860s as shops selling Japanese wares sprang up in Paris and London. These shops became gathering places for artists and art dealers: Japanese wares captivated them. Consequently, artists scattered Japanese items, as exotic objets, in their paintings.
By contrast, european’s women typical clothing enhanced the feminine shapes: consisiting of presenting large hips, contrasing with a small waist. To do so they used corsets and petticoats which not only restricted the movements but was dangerous for the health as it press the thorax and keep very warm in summer. In addition, we can mention the use of crinoline: actual structure replacing the petticoats, which is said was actually more comfortable and gave more freedom of movements.
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To conclude, japan’s clothing invaded western fashion thanks to the curiosity and fascination of european regarding its culture. Esthetique of shape were different but morte importantly the construction of garment, therefore the perception of creation and feminity were opposite. Though some designers managed to adapt the japan input so as to make wearable clothe for the western world.
However those clothes are the result of a history built by beliefs and habbits. For instance, we can compare what europeans queens wore for ceremonies; with what japanese empress use to wear.
Finally, the end of the 19th century was the first arrival of japonism in western fashion, though we can highlight not only an increazing interest for it throughout the 20th century with Yves Saint Laurent for example. But we can enlight a second wave during the 1990’s when japonize designer such as Rei Kawakubo or Yohji Yamamoto came to Paris to show their their innovative avant-garde designs which have left an indelible mark on contemporary design worldwide.In other words: 1868 is a key date regarding the relationship between western fashion and japanese avant-garde.
This summer I went to the exhbition Kimono Styles: the John C. Collection at the MET museum: I was mesmerized. What fascinated me was not really the elegance and exoticism of japanese garments, but rather how they melted in western fashion, creating a new esthetique. I will never forget the last room of the exhibit showing desings from Cristobal Balenciaga to Alexander Mcqueen and John Galliano; inspired from the kimono. Although the exbhibit was marvelous I felt hungry again for information. The exhibit explained the history of kimono, its evolution inside japan, as well as its influences in nowadays fashion, it did not put light on its arrival in Europe on a material viewpoint as well as on its consequences on mentalities.
Designer Paul Poiret implemented japanese techniques in his garments. For instance, this coat is made out of only one piece of fabric. If we follow the lines of the fabric as it spiraled around the body, we realize it is only constructed of one piece of fabirc stich together. Poiret took one pannel (rectangle) of fabric around 5 meter long and connected it with only one seam in the back, leaving openings for the sleeves.
Then by opening it up we discover the vivid color of the interior contrasting with the severe brown. Although the velvet offers many reflects, even more thanks to the pleats, which suggest a fire burnt color. I think the material choosen here, reminds all the more the coccon feeling usually expressed by japanee kimono.
Finally Poiret’s audacious experiments transformed the use of the kimono in the West: instead of wearing as a tea gown at home, it was now done as a public fashion statement.
These design attest how fashion enhanced the role of women in society at that time: pleasing men. However, it is interesting to observe how western people thought of compressing the woman; when , japanese thought of imposing a high weight hard to lift. In other words, Europe used physical beauty to value their women whereas japanese seemed to want their women to remain discreet, almost hidden behind layers of luxurious fabrics. However in both societies, women were a tool either to demonstrate wealth or power.
These two examples shows fashion as a translation of people’ way of thinking which varies a lot depending on the time as the place they are. Indeed, european factories targetted tight garments following the bodies natural shapes. Japan perceive clothes, more espiaclly textile, as an art by itself. To them, the person is a tool to emphasize the beauty of the garment in itself.
Japan culture prooved to the european how women, could be feminine and sophisticated in other natural shapes they had. Plus it gave women even more choices in how to dress, which part of their body they wanted to enhance, what silhouette fitted them. Therefore it gave them more power on a dailybasis.
It is interesting also to highlight her fascination for the dancers Loïe Fuller and Isadora Duncan, who invented free dances where they played around with draperies enhancing the freedom of bodies but also of fabrics.
Actually, Akiko Fukai of the Kyoto Costume Institute, writes in her essay, Japonisme in Fashion,
"probably most people looking at the dresses of Madeleine Vionnet (1876-1975) would not perceive them as cut along straight lines and constructed of rectangles, as are Japanese kimonos; yet at every turn we were struck by their resemblance to the essential flatness of kimono".
That is why We can emphasize the esthetique of japan clothing as the main focuse instead of the difference in the garment construction arising from japanese habbits.
Girl Carrying a Parasol, Meiji Period (1868/1912),woodblock print, ink and color on crepe paper
MET museum; Kimono Styles exhbition
We can observe how designers got inspired more by the shapes rather than the techniques as numerous stiching points prooves the multiples pattern’ pieces as opposed to a classical kimono construction (only one piece). Nonetheless, compare to the perfectly fitted garments containing numerous patterns and accurate steeches; europeans must have studied japanese contruction as the number of stiches drastically decreased.
Paul Poiret’s audacious experiments transformed the use of the kimono in the West: instead of wearing as a tea gown at home, it was now done as a public fashion statement.
The jūnihitoe appeared around the 10th century during the Heian period. It is a very elegant and intricate type of kimono worn only by court women in Japan. Literally the name of the garment means "twelve layers". The layers of silk garments are put on top of each other, which make the total weight of the garment can be up to twenty kilo, which makes it quite restrictive to move with it.
The layer closest to the body is made of white silk and is followed by ten layers of clothing each with a different name which are then closed by a final layer or cloak.
As a matter of fact, the color and layer combinations of the junihitoe are very important as they indicate the taste and status of the woman. Some colors have poetic names like "spring blossom plum." The only places you can see all the layers are at the sleeves and neck.
However, we can highlight the debut of japonism in fashion magazines in 1867 as an impact of the international exposition in Paris. For instance, the october edition of the Journal des demoiselles contained an illustration of clothes labelled “Japanese style”.
This coat is an interesting example of a mix between western habbits and japanese fashion fundamentals. We can notice a pulled-back collar revealing the neck; as well as a kimono-style overlap and loose drapes for the lower part of the back. However we can highlight the pleats enhancing the shapes of the hips as well as pointing to the waist.
`Even though the appearance of a kimono is effectively expressed by Western-style three-dimensional cutting, it remains only an inspiration: istarting in 1907, there was a trend for fashion inspired by Japanese style, including details of the kimono. Whereas before the 20th century j only japanese textiles were used in creation, never shape. As we can see on the dress by Jacques Doucet on the right of the page.
