LibGuides: Fashion and Clothing History: Japan

Recommended Books on Japanese Costume

Four Centuries of Fashion: Classical Kimono from the Kyoto National Museum

GT1560 .C53 1997 Library Use

When Art Became Fashion: Kosode in Edo-Period Japan

NK4784.A1 G68 1992 Library Use

The Fine Art of Kimono Embroidery

NK9298.K87 A4 2006

Fashioning Kimono: Dress and Modernity in Early Twentieth-Century Japan

NK4784.A1 F37 2005

Searching for Books on Japanese Costume

Here are some suggested search terms to use in OneSearch:

Costume -- Japan

Kimonos

Costume -- Japan -- History -- Edo period

Textile design -- Japan -- History -- Edo period

Textile fabrics -- Japan

Clothing and dress -- Japan

Fashion -- Japan

Embroidery -- Japan

Search Tip:

The search term "Japan" will bring you different results than the search term "Japanese". If you want to search both at the same time, simply type "Japan*" into OneSearch and the computer will search both terms at once.

For example, a search for "costume japan*" is the same as searching "costume japan" AND "costume japanese" giving you more results:

Browsing Japanese Costume Books on the Shelf

Bookshelf Books about Japanese Costume can be in a number of different sections of the library depending on if the book's focus is textile type, time period, art by country or individual designer. Here are some suggested call numbers to start browsing:

GT1560- Kimonos

N7350-7359- Fine Arts, Japan

NE1310-Color prints, Japanese

NK4784- Decorative Arts, Japan

NK8884- Textile Arts, Japan

NK8984- Textiles, Japan

TT 505 - Designers
(TT505 is a HUGE section! Try to find the specific number for an individual designer by searching their name in OneSearch. For example most books about "Rei Kawakubo" will be under TT505.K39.)

Searching Databases about Japanese Costume

Historical Research:

The Berg Fashion Library contains fashion specific dictionaries and encyclopedias. It's a great place to get definitions and overviews on a topic.

ARTSTOR is an image database and has thousands of examples of both historical and modern Japanese art and textiles from museum collections around the world. Images are available in hi-res and are downloadable. You can browse by Country of Origin, Museum, Medium and Time Period.

Gale Virtual Reference Library also contains fashion specific dictionaries and encyclopedias.

Modern Research:

The Fashion Studies Online: The Videofashion Library has streaming video of runway shows starting from the 1970s.

Women's Wear Daily (WWD) Archive covers fashion and business news. The library's subscription covers 1910 to 6 months ago.

The Vogue Archive has the full text of every issue of Vogue magazine from 1892 to the present day.

Fashion and Clothing History