By LINDSEY MARBURGER
Eagle Contributing Writer
Each autumn, a special group of people appear in Washington, D.C. Everyone has listened to them endlessly protesting against the deciduous leaves of the D.C. area and their failure to turn bright red, orange and yellow. While changing the trees has proved impossible, the Textile Museum will provide a welcome respite from the "fall leaf homesickness" syndrome.
The textile museum now features a kimono entitled "Glory of the Tree," painted by Tadayoshi Yamamoto using a dying process known as rozome (pronounced row-zoh-may). A wax dying technique, rozome involves placing liquid wax over areas of cloth and then dying that fabric, creating clear definition and vibrant colors. Featured on "Glory of the Tree" is that perfect New England tree - a black background with a yellow beam of light illuminating glorious leaves of burgundy, fading to fire engine and tangerine, then saffron to white. Also, scattered throughout the black background and the arboreal foreground, metallic gold flecks shine and flicker like late-season lighting bugs in the night.
Part of an exhibit entitled "Rozome Masters of Japan," "Glory of the Tree" is just one piece in an exhibition starring 15 textile artists. Rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century, modern rozome features such canvases as silk, linen and paper and utilizes many artistic styles, ranging from contemporary abstract to traditional landscapes reminiscent of those featured on wood-block designs. With such wide variety, art and clothing lovers of all tastes will find textiles to their liking in this exhibit.
Carrying on Japanese art and cultural traditions, many of the textiles feature scenes from the natural world. These include beautiful depictions of lily pads, angel's trumpets and the classic East Asian snow herons. Many of these natural pieces achieve the depth and luminosity of a quality oil painting, with the additional advantage of brighter, more exacting colors than possible in traditional painting or dying techniques. And moving away from the traditional, many pieces take full advantage of the color allowances of this medium in creating psychedelic-looking flowers (Midori Abe) and alien-green heads of cabbage (Kageo Miura).
One highlight of the collection features two folding screens and has been mounted to a size of almost 12 feet long. Titled "Upheaval Seashore-Wind Traces" and painted by Chie Otani, this piece, at first sight, appears as a writhing field of spaghetti noodles. Further inspection reveals a distinct lined pattern to the rows of rocks and the curvature of the "spaghetti noodles." And indeed, in its holistic image, the textile expertly creates a sense of time, as the near edge glints with the darkness of an incoming tide and the far horizon features one lone strip of turquoise sky. In between, the spaghetti sand blows in the sea breeze and waits in its sinuous ripples for the incoming tide to reform the landscape.
For those who prefer less thought involved in the art selection process, the trio of folding screens by Fukumoto Shigeki, titled "Santo-3 Lights" ("Sun Beam," "Moon Light" and "Stardust"), are highly modern, almost digital pieces. One side holds individually interwoven strips of different shades, resembling a brighter version of the pixels visible in over-enlarged digital photographs. On the opposite side, each rozome textile looks personal and individual, as though segments of finger and footprints from dozens of individuals were imprinted onto the fabric. Playful and bright - each screen alternately featuring candy pink, sky blue and lilac - these pieces of art mimic and mock the traditional rice folding screens of the artist's culture.
Finally, the piece toward which most visitors gravitate is the largest in the collection. At 164 inches long, "Night at the Pond" by Keijin Ihaya characterizes creepy nighttime animal life (think slimy) and paints leaves in a fluorescent green almost too bright to be natural. But while the garish color scheme grabs attention, the subtle detailing of leaf veins, creature eyes and visible water movement belie the skill, control and artistry with which the textile was crafted.
So for those desperately seeking an answer for their fall leaf cravings, anyone who has ever owned or ever wanted to own a silk kimono and everyone else who enjoys eclectic, varied art, this exhibition is worth the time spent. The one disadvantage is the failure of the gallery space to properly complement the works. For an insider tip to help remedy this disadvantage, the best view of "Night at the Pond" and "Santo" comes from the cutout windows on the upper floor - don't be afraid to climb the stairs into the upper gallery.
