Japanese boros, textiles that have been patched together in a casual fashion (unlike the highly arranged quilted or patched works of today) to form a garment, are on display at Shenzhen Fine Art Institute. Entry is free.
Various boros in the exhibition. Photo from Shenzhen Fine Art Institute.
The boros are selected from Japanese folklorist Chuzaburo Tanaka’s collection at Amuse Museum in Tokyo. Also known as the Textile Culture and Ukiyo-e Art Museum, it is a private museum specializing in Japanese textile culture and ukiyo-e. The museum houses a collection of everyday clothing and other textiles from Tanaka’s collection.
Boros were passed down from generation to generation in a household; some were even made as long ago as the Edo Period. Boros were made purely for the practical purpose of retaining warmth in snowy areas and for making garments last as long as possible in a place where it was hard to obtain any sort of cloth. A boro contains no waste, keeping with a concept called “the beauty of practicality” which appears to be widely forgotten today and which goes against today’s prevailing consumer culture.
“Boro” is now becoming an internationally known artistic phrase, highly rated in the field of textile art design. They are now requested for purchase by various artists and collectors. The motifs found in boros have inspired fashion designers such as Louis Vuitton, which incorporated boro motifs into its 2013 Spring/Summer Paris men’s collection.
Dates: Until Jan. 3, 2020
Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m., closed Mondays
Venue: Shenzhen Fine Art Institute, 36 Jinhu Street 1, Futian District (福田区金湖一街36号深圳画院)
Metro: Line 9 to Yinhu Station (银湖站), Exit D
