Plum blossoms
Dark
Motif
This motif offers a darker interpretation of Ogata Korin’s masterpiece Red and White Plum Blossoms. Two trees stand against a dark silver background, facing each other across a shimmering gold river. The colors appear inverted from the original work, where a radiant gold-leaf background contrasts with a river painted in dark lines.
Here, the background is woven using Japanese washi paper layered with ultra-thin metal foils, creating its distinctive iridescent silver sheen. This technique, called hikinuki, sometimes incorporates mother-of-pearl or gold leaf. Other luminous details on this obi, like the fine swirls in the water, are achieved by weaving metal threads and lamé directly into the silk, enhancing the design’s richness.
To me, this obi looks almost like Time Burton and Ogata Korin made a collaborative piece together.
