Rozome Masters of Japan, featuring the work of 15 contemporary Japanese artists, will be on view at The Textile Museum October 14, 2005 – February 12, 2006.
The exhibition includes folding screens, scrolls, panels and kimono all created using rozome, a wax-resist dyeing technique unique to Japan.
The exhibition is complemented by a selection of Japanese textiles from The Textile Museum's own collections.
Rozome has roots in ancient Japan, dating to the Nara period (645-794). It was eclipsed by other resist-dye techniques after the Heian period (794-1185) but experienced a revival of popularity in the early part of the 20th century, when Kyoto-based kimono specialists began to reexamine the possibilities of the wax-resist medium.
Rozome flourished after World War II as artists became interested in the technique as a vehicle for unique image-making and self-expression on cloth. Today, in the hands of these talented artists, rozome is used to create technically breathtaking, complex works whose imagery ranges from traditional botanical and landscape subjects to contemporary abstract compositions.
The Japan Times says that all of these artists use a culture-specific visual vocabulary derived from processes essential to the art of kimono to give rozome its signature Japanese look.
Unlike other wax-resist dyeing techniques, such as the batik method of applying wax to cloth before repeatedly immersing the cloth in dye baths, rozome involves the use of a brush to apply the wax and dye directly onto the fabric.
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