Japanese Papers for Pomegranate

Newly launched and licensed by Yellow House is a beautiful book of 30 postcards featuring a range of glorious Japanese Papers in collaboration with Glasgow Museums and published by American art publisher Pomegranate.

These exquisite designs are rich in their delicacy, detail, range of vibrant colours and delicate hues.

Popular during the latter part of the Edo period, Japanese decorative papers known as chiyo-gami were often based on the exquisite kimono patterns of fabric designers in Kyoto’s Yuzen textile district.

Designers gleaned inspiration from literature, theater, and cultural themes, and their work reflected a deep reverence for nature and an intrinsic admiration of beauty. Early patternmaking involved hand-inking and pressing leaves but gave way to mass-production stenciling and woodblock printing, which rendered the papers more accessible and affordable.

The vibrant colors and refined compositions of chiyo-gami, also known as yuzen, were put to fashionable use in handcrafting household accessories, paper dolls, origami boxes, gift wrap, and stationery. Sought after to this day, Japanese decorative papers are available in countless historical and modern patterns ranging from lush florals to symbolic or geometric abstracts.

Glasgow Museums has an extensive collection of Japanese decorative art, including these thirty woodblock prints that date from the nineteenth century.