Kimono Series

This is a work in Progress

Japan has a culture known for its embrace of tradition, one of which is the item of clothing known as a kimono or the less-formal summer yukata. Often worn at special events or festivals, the clothes represent hundreds of years of traditional garb, constantly updated with changing styles and aesthetics, with wildly differing colors and patterns that offer a glimpse of the wearer’s personality.

While living in Japan in 2017, I did a series of photo sessions inspired by 17th- to 19th-century Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints with women I met, taking intimate portraits of them with their chosen kimono or yukata, each with a story as unique as themselves. For one, it was a rare 70-year-old vintage store find, for another, it was a hand-made heirloom made by her grandmother for her mother.