Kimono [Hardcover]

Paul van Riel (Author), Liza Dalby (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 25, 2001

Any first-time visitor to Japan will be struck by that most beautiful symbol of its ancient culture: the kimono. This book contains a selection of the numerous encounters photographer Paul van Riel had with people wearing kimono all over Japan. Although its popularity has dwindled somewhat over the last 25 years, the national garment of Japan is still deeply rooted in Japanese culture, as these photographs testify. Liza Dalby describes the kimono's transformation from daily clothing to formal wear over the course of the 20th century. Her personal experiences give us a glimpse of the meanings the kimono has for the geisha. Introduction and captions by Liza Dalby, photographs and text by Paul van Riel.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Of all the traditional Japanese arts, kimono design may be the most sumptuous to survive today. These exceptional photographs beautifully illustrate not only its richness but the position it occupies in modern-day Japan." -- Arthur Golden, author of "Memoirs of a Geisha"

About the Author

Paul van Riel wrote the text and was the photographer.

Liza Dalby also wrote the captions.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Hotei Publishing; 1st edition (May 25, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 907482241X
• ISBN-13: 978-9074822411
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #741,031 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

68 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful suprise, July 3, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Kimono (Hardcover)

... The ... suprise was the book itself. I have to be honest I bought it because Liza Dalby wrote the introduction and because Arthur Golden was quoted saying it was a good book. Having read the books by Liza Dalby and Arthur Golden I wanted to see some pictures of kimono and geisha that were more than just snapshots. And that's exactly what this book does, it gives you 120 beautiful pictures and a lot of information. A wonderful suprise.

The book is neatly divided into sections: - The use of kimono in festivals, - Kimono you see in the street, - Tradition in its manufacture (weaving,spinning, dyeing), - The commercial side of kimono (fitting, kimono shops), - Maiko and Geisha (including some wonderful pictures made at the Nyokoba Geisha Training school on Kyoto), - Men wearing kimono (storytellers, sumo referees, tea ushers, monks) - Kabuki (this is my favorite. You see a kabuki player getting dressed for a female role) - Work (the kimono as a uniform) - Footwear (an interesting detail) Apart from the beautiful pictures this book has an informative introduction by Liza Dalby and with each picture you get a caption that gives you some little piece of insight that changes the way you look at the picture. Having been to Japan this book to me is a souvenir of some of the things I've seen, the people wearing kimono in the street, the festivals. But it also showed me some things I could never see (the behind the stage kabuki pictures and the manufacturing of the kimono). If you have been to Japan you too will recognize some of these pictures. If you have not been to Japan this book gives you a great impression of what to expect (kimono wise that is). Last but not least the book has a beautiful design, it's a great coffee table book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars more info please, February 22, 2011

By 

Kirachan (Austin TX) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Kimono (Hardcover)

the pictures were nice, but I think more information about each picture would have helped. there were also a few pictures that had been flipped that were a little distracting. all the kanji would be backwards and everyone in the picture would have their kimono on the wrong way. also they dropped japanese terms without giving any definitions. a pretty book, but not as nice as i expected, if i had seen it in a store before i had bought it instead of getting it off of amazon i probably wouldn't have gotten it.

7 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Poor,Poor book, November 16, 2005

By 

Nadia Azumi - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Kimono (Hardcover)

This book should really not have been published, turists can take better pictures. Having been to Japan at least 50 times,I can say that even the kimonos are pathetic.There are so many places were pictures can be taken in a much better way than the ones in this book.There is no explanation only pictures. CHEAP pictures. I am very sad to put a 1 star,as all my critiques have been good.
Do not waste your money.There are better books on kimonos than this one.