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PASSIONEER


À la recherche du temps perdu / The Sleeping Beauty Awakens After 100 Years
1928. The enthronement of Emperor Showa. My great-grandmother attended in a kouchigi court robe. This is where the hundred-year journey begins. In 1928, my great-grandparents attended the imperial enthronement ceremony of Emperor Showa.My great-grandmother stood there in a ko-uchigi, dressed according to court custom. After the war, during a time of severe food shortages, my grandmother—who had married into the family—kept this garment.She never sold it.Even then, it must hav

Hamanaka Akiko
Apr 92 min read


À la recherche du temps perdu / A Kimono Is Never Finished
Unfolded. Laid flat. Time taken to think. Whose shoulders will it rest upon next? In the 2010s, I had my mother's furisode from the 1950s re-dyed for my daughter's coming-of-age ceremony. I chose the color of the deepest ocean floor. Beneath that depth, only the gold leaf remained visible — rising to the surface like light from another world. The mysterious beauty seemed to whisper of my daughter's unknown future, stirring both anxiety and wonder. And now, that re-dyed furiso

Hamanaka Akiko
Apr 22 min read


À la recherche du temps perdu/Hajitomi, structural silence Kimono Tailoring Techniques in a Modern Coat — The Story of the “JFK Coat”
Modern coat made with traditional kimono tailoring techniques This coat is built using the techniques of kimono tailoring.Even without wearing a kimono, it is possible to wear the craftsmanship of kimono making itself. This coat is an example of that idea. The outer fabric is Oitama tsumugi , a silk textile woven from pre-dyed threads. Because the yarns are dyed before weaving, the cloth has no true “front” or “back,” making it an ideal material for an unlined coat. It resis

Hamanaka Akiko
Mar 122 min read
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