Whose Sleeves? [left of a pair]

The artist who created this pair of folding screens was clearly inspired by the beautiful, colorful kimonos worn by wealthy women of the 1600s. He depicted a variety of women’s robes, some hung on ornate lacquer racks, others folded on the ground. In the painting, the lady who evidently owns these garments is absent. We, the viewers, are invited to imagine her beauty ourselves.

The title, Tagasode, or “Whose Sleeves?” was a later addition that may reflect a shift in the screen’s perceived meaning. In the late 1800s, such paintings of women’s garments on display came to be associated with tagasode, an ancient poetic device whereby the perfume arising from the sweep of a robe’s sleeves may evoke the image of its owner.