V&A

Pale Green Silk Gauze Summer Kimono

Japanese Traditional · 1950s · Japanese

Production

handmade

Material

silk gauze

Culture

Japanese

Influences

traditional Japanese kimono construction · Edo period floral motifs

A formal summer kimono constructed from lightweight silk gauze in pale green. The garment features the traditional T-shaped silhouette with wide, flowing sleeves and a straight-line body that falls to ankle length. The lower portion displays delicate resist-dyed motifs of fuyō (hibiscus) and nadeshiko (carnation) flowers in soft pink and white tones against the green ground. The resist-dyeing technique creates subtle, organic patterns with characteristic soft edges. A darker green obi sash wraps around the waist, secured with traditional tying methods. The lightweight gauze construction provides breathability appropriate for summer wear while maintaining the formal structure required for ceremonial occasions during Japan's post-war reconstruction period.

dressstraightfloor length

Connected To

Pink White Striped Cotton Kimono with Obi

V&A

Japanese Traditional · 2010s

V&A

Japanese Traditional · 1950s

Pink White Striped Cotton Kimono with Obi

75%

Pale Green Silk Gauze Summer Kimono

Influences·traditional Japanese kimono constructionWorn with·obiTechnique·resist-dyeingFunction

Echoes Across Time

Japanese Traditional → Japanese Traditional · 60yr75%

SHARED

These two kimono reveal how Japanese dress navigates the tension between tradition and personal expression across generations. The pink striped cotton version breaks convention with its bold geometric pattern and bright obi clash—a deliberate departure from classical restraint that speaks to modern individualism within traditional form.

Influences·traditional Japanese kimono constructionWorn with·obiTechnique·resist-dyeing

Pull the Thread→

Follow this garment wherever the graph leads

V&A

Japanese Traditional · 2010s

V&A

Japanese Traditional · 1950s

Pink White Striped Silk Kimono with Obi

74%

Pale Green Silk Gauze Summer Kimono

Influences·traditional Japanese kimono constructionWorn with·obiWorn with·undergarmentsFunction·religious-ceremonial

SHARED60 years

These two kimono reveal how Japanese formal dress navigates seasons and occasions through subtle calibrations of color and weight. The pink-striped example, with its crisp vertical lines and substantial silk, speaks to cooler weather formality, while the pale green kimono's gossamer silk gauze and delicate scattered motifs mark it as natsu-mono—summer wear designed to breathe.

Text78%

Image88%

Entity56%

V&A

2000s · 2000s

V&A

Japanese Traditional · 1950s

Coral Pink Striped Silk Kimono with Obi

58%

Pale Green Silk Gauze Summer Kimono

Worn with·obiWorn with·undergarmentsFunction·religious-ceremonial

SHARED50 years

The coral pink striped kimono with its bold painterly obi panel reads like contemporary Japanese street style meets traditional craft, while the pale green gauze kimono whispers of classical restraint with its delicate scattered florals and translucent summer weight.

Text77%

Image85%

Entity27%

V&A

2000s · 2010s

V&A

Japanese Traditional · 1950s

Navy Blue Resist-Dyed Silk Jacquard Obi

57%

Pale Green Silk Gauze Summer Kimono

Worn with·undergarmentsTechnique·resist-dyeingFunction·religious-ceremonial

SHARED60 years · cross-category

The navy kimono's bold geometric patchwork and the pale green kimono's delicate scattered florals represent two poles of Japanese resist-dyeing mastery — one shouting modernity through sharp-edged squares that could have stepped off a Mondrian canvas, the other whispering tradition through soft cherry blossoms that seem to float across silk gauze like petals on water.

Text75%

Image91%

Entity26%

Japanese Traditional → Japanese Traditional · 60yr74%

SHARED

Influences·traditional Japanese kimono constructionWorn with·obiWorn with·undergarments