1 of 4

Patched Indigo, Japanese Boro Textile, circa 1850-1900

$25,477.62List Price

About the Item

Patched indigo cotton textile with stitching in homespun natural fibre, on a stretcher covered in indigo cotton, circa 1850-1900 Dimensions: 164 x 164 cm (can be hung anyway up) Provenance: Gordon Reece collection Boro textiles were the traditional bedcovers and garments of poor rural communities of Northern Japan - the literal translation of ‘boro’ being rags. They were carefully constructed from salvaged pieces of second-hand cotton fabric bartered from sea faring merchants from the late- eighteenth, these examples are from the late nineteenth- and early-twentieth century. Cotton would have been a luxury for boro makers of the time and its inclusion is clearly prized. These fragments were pieced together with homespun bast fibre and are often reinforced using the traditional sashiko stitching that add a personal touch the compositions. Boros were subsequently worked on by each new generation that inherited them, often being several layers thick. Gordon Reece has been instrumental in the resurgence of interest in these artefacts of folk tradition. Similarly, to the rising appreciation of Gee’s Bend quilts in the US, Gordon Reece presents boro as artworks of necessity. Each textile has been painstakingly conserved and attached to an indigo stretcher, but nothing has been altered. Reece has collected these specific pieces for their large scale and their intactness but mainly for their aesthetic qualities - lively designs, methodical designs and expressive designs. It is hard for Western audiences not to view these pieces through the lens of post-war art, including the work of Kurt Schwitters, Antoni Tapies, Robert Rauschenberg and Alberto Burri. Further, a growing interest in ‘outsider’ art has helped us appreciate the unsung and untrained artists of the past and present. Although it might be anachronistic to label the boro as art, it would be wrong to think that their construction was not guided by an inherently human creativity. Only a small number of genuine historical examples have survived because of the shame felt by their testament to rural poverty in Japan. In his pursuit of these piece Reece has been a pioneer, always on the look out for something unusual and unloved. This is the first time the collection have been publicly displayed in the UK since their inclusion in a groundbreaking exhibition on the subject - Boro: Threads of Life - in 2014 at Somerset House.

Dimensions:
Height: 64.57 in (164 cm)Width: 64.57 in (164 cm)Depth: 1.58 in (4 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Cotton,Patchwork
Place of Origin:
Japan
Period:
Late 19th Century
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1850-1900
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. The condition of these textiles is fully consistent with their age and use. Each textile has been painstakingly conserved and attached to an indigo stretcher, but nothing has been altered.
Seller Location:
London, GB
Reference Number:
Seller: G Reece ref 191stDibs: LU3657315864041

Antique Early 19th Century Japanese Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Boro0 Japanese Antiques Primitive Art BORO Indigo-dyed patchwork Old Cloth

$2,000

H 59.06 in W 66.93 in D 0.4 in

Boro3 Japanese Antiques Primitive Art BORO Indigo-dyed Old Cloth patchwork

Located in Niiza, JP

Material: cotton Width 1700 x Height 1000 x Depth 5 mm (about) weight 600g estimate Packaging (It will be rolled or folded and shipped in bubble wrap and cardboard.) 30 cm x 50 cm x ...

Category

Antique 19th Century Japanese Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Boro3 Japanese Antiques Primitive Art BORO Indigo-dyed Old Cloth patchwork

$700

H 39.38 in W 66.93 in D 0.2 in

Boro1 Japanese Antiques Primitive Art BORO Indigo-dyed Old Cloth patchwork

Located in Niiza, JP

Material: cotton Width 1550 x Height 1500 x Depth 10 mm (about) weight 2 kg estimate Packaging (It will be rolled or folded and shipped in bubble wrap and cardboard.) 45 cm x 45 cm ...

Category

Antique 19th Century Japanese Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Boro1 Japanese Antiques Primitive Art BORO Indigo-dyed Old Cloth patchwork

$1,800

H 59.06 in W 61.03 in D 0.4 in

Japanese Indigo Antique Boro Futon Cover or Wall Panel

Located in Alessandria, Piemonte

Rare perfect antique collection Japanese Indigo Boro Futon cover : also to use. The rare antique boros are now valued as pieces of art, therefore they are...

Category

Mid-20th Century Japanese Japonisme Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Japanese Indigo Antique Boro Futon Cover or Wall Panel

$3,122

H 69.69 in W 62.21 in D 0.4 in

Vintage Japanese Indigo Folk Kamon Textile

Located in Chicago, IL

Dating to the mid-20th century, this vintage Japanese textile is a folk example of traditional stencil dyed fabric, known as katazome. Richly...

Category

Mid-20th Century Japanese Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Vintage Japanese Indigo Folk Kamon Textile

$380

H 58.5 in W 52.5 in D 0.25 in

Vintage Japanese Indigo Folk Kamon Textile

Located in Chicago, IL

Dating to the mid-20th century, this vintage Japanese textile is a folk example of traditional stencil dyed fabric, known as katazome. Richly...

Category

Mid-20th Century Japanese Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Vintage Japanese Indigo Folk Kamon Textile

$380

H 57.5 in W 61.5 in D 0.25 in

Early 20th Century Boro Cloth Fragments, Japanese, C. 1900

Located in London, GB

A collection of late 19th/early 20th century indigo dyed ‘boro’ cloth fragments. Japanese, c. 1900. Mounted on anthracite grey card in box frames with black...

Category

Early 20th Century Japanese Textiles

Materials

Fabric, Textile

Early 20th Century Boro Cloth Fragments, Japanese, C. 1900

$2,065 / set

H 23.04 in W 17.72 in D 1.19 in

Japanese Old Indigo Dyed Striped Fabric / Tapestry / early 20th century / BORO

Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba

This is an ancient Japanese indigo-dyed cloth produced between the end of the Meiji and Taisho periods. Three thin, evenly spaced yellowish lines create a regular rhythm on a deep in...

Category

Early 20th Century Japanese Taisho Textiles

Materials

Cotton

Japanese Old Indigo Dyed Striped Fabric / Tapestry / early 20th century / BORO

$1,800 / item

H 68.12 in W 59.45 in D 0.08 in

Indigo Cotton Sumba Textile

Located in New York, NY

Antique indigo and white textile from Sumba. The perfect size to wear as a shawl. Mythical characters, horses and birds intermingle in this graphic textile. Ikat is an ancient techni...

Category

Mid-20th Century Indonesian Tribal Quilts and Blankets

Materials

Cotton

Indigo Cotton Sumba Textile

$490

H 18 in W 56 in D 0.4 in

Antique Indigo Mali Textile

Located in New York, NY

African Mali indigo textile circa 1950. Handwoven, vegetable dyed cotton. We only select the best. This soft textile was sourced in the spirit of Wabi-Sabi, a Japanese philosophy th...

Category