We are pleased to announce our new collection exhibition of COSMIC WONDER at Elbereth, Kyoto.
The Ajrak collection is made of organic kala cotton, a native Indian cotton, and printed by Pakistani artisans in the Kutch region of western India using ajrak (woodblock printing), a natural indigo dye and akane herb dyeing. Workwear made into old denim jackets and pants from fabrics made from kala cotton dyed with indigo and hand-woven into denim by twill weaving.
Made from a combination of sumi-dyed linen sheeting and a cotton-linen typewriter densely woven with a washed and bleached look created by refining and dyeing.
This collection is inspired by the striped fabrics of 19th century Europe.
The piece-dyeing process produces subtle variations of color. Colors are Black, Shell, Violet ash, Citron ash, Rose crystal, Dark sumi, and Ryukyu indigo.
Collection includes: Twisted dress combination with organic cotton Panama jacquard and double gauze check, Wrapped pants in two different European stripes, Wrapped skirt, Wrapped dress and Farmer dress in a combination of Panama jacquard.These and other carefully selected items are available.
We are pleased to announce the new arrivals of natural indigo dyed hand-woven denim collection.
Made from Organic Kala Cotton, a native Indian cotton, dyed with indigo and hand-woven in twill weave in a studio in South India. Collection includes workwear reminiscent of old denim jackets and pants.
The new collection is available at official distributor and COSMIC WONDER Online Shop.
Kala Cotton Kala cotton is a native Indian cotton grown in an environment where water and fertile land are scarce. It is called Kala, which in Sanskrit can mean “black”, because the calyx of the cotton plant looks black like a hard shell. Because it naturally deters pests like the pink bollworm, which are attracted to cotton, it does not require pesticides. The fiber length is as short as 20~22mm, and the fiber thickness is as thick as 5μ. It does not require irrigation facilities and chemical fertilizers, and is a sustainable material that is in harmony with the farmers and the environment. Kala Cotton is in harmony with the earth, nature, and human, enriching our senses and our lives.
From a collection inspired by the striped fabrics of 19th century Europe. The piece-dyeing process produces subtle variations of color. Colors are Black, Shell, Violet ash, Citron ash, Rose crystal, Dark sumi, and Ryukyu indigo. Collection includes: Twisted dress combination with organic cotton Panama jacquard and double gauze check, Wrapped pants in two different European stripes, Wrapped skirt, Wrapped dress and Farmer dress in a combination of Panama jacquard.
From the leather collection. Gently enveloping, meditative design. Bifold wallet, Wallet, Card case, Circular accessory case and Conductor’s bag made of naturally-tanned leather is tanned with mimosa extract, which deepens the texture of leather, and beautiful shining foil leather. Bifold wallet, Wallet, Card case. Natural-tanned leather engraved with the sacred geometric pattern. Bifold wallet, Wallet, Card case made of naturally-tanned leather engraved with sacred geometric patterns.
Unique reversible tailored haori jacket made of cotton line typewriter with a washed and bleached look created by refining and dyeing densely woven cotton linen.
We are pleased to announce the new arrivals of Elein Fleiss’s Photographic works and Booklet at COSMIC WONDER Online Shop.
The three women I photographed are friends who live in the same village and surroundings as me. But like me, they also came from elsewhere. I had a vision of women dressed in off-white wool garments and walking in winter landscapes. I started from there. Everything else―post-industrial landscapes, nuclear power plants, and even makeup―came by chance and coincidentally changed the direction of my project. When I say “came by chance,” I mean I decided to let the unexpected come in, which somehow made sense to me. – Elein Fleiss
We held the Elein Fleiss “L’Hiver” exhibition at Vacant/Centre (Tokyo) and Elbereth (Kyoto) in the fall of 2024. To coincide with these exhibitions, her photograph works and a booklet entitled L’Hiver was published. Her photographs overlap the impression of the post-industrial revolution with scenes of her friends living in the village around her and surrounded by nature. The photographs are inkjet printed on bamboo paper. A booklet interweaves selections from the past two decades of her diary writing along with her photographic works. The cover is a two-color Risograph print.
Elein co-founded the magazine Purple, which she edited from the 1990s through the early 2000s, followed by Purple Journal from 2003 to 2007. Currently living in a village with medieval atmosphere in the southwest of France, she continues her engagement with writing and photography.
We are pleased to present Elein Fleiss’s exhibition “L’Hiver / Diana, Flore” at Elbereth, Kyoto.
Elein co-founded the magazine Purple, which she edited from the 1990s through the early 2000s, followed by Purple Journal from 2003 to 2007. Currently living in a country town in the southwest of France, she continues her engagement with writing and photography. For these exhibitions in Tokyo and Kyoto, she will showcase a new body of work, a combination of photographs and vintage clothing. To coincide with these exhibitions, a booklet entitled L’Hiver will be published. L’Hiver interweaves selections from the past two decades of her diary writing along with her photographic works. COSMIC WONDER’s “THAT OLD MAGIC” Autumn / Winter collection can also be viewed in the same exhibition.
Elein Fleiss was born in April 1968 in Boulogne-Billancourt. She now lives in Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val after leaving Paris fifteen years ago. Since 1989 she has been organizing exhibitions, publishing magazines, directing super-8 films, taking lots of photographs, writing texts and picking wild herbs and flowers. Her photographs have been published in various magazines, in two books (One Star Press, Poetry of Sex and Adachi Press), and have been exhibited in Japan as well as Europe.
AAWAA,the founder of COSMIC WONDER a contemporary artist and ,is pleased to present a new work at Kyotango, Kyoto.
TAIZA Residence, which will open this fall, will feature a new spatial work by AAWAA using Taiza’s soil, and SEI TAIZA will feature a spatial work by AAWAA.
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Exhibition period:
October 25 – November 17, 2024
Open 11am – 4pm *Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays
Venues:
TAIZA Residence
3332-2, Taiza, Tango-cho, Kyotango, Kyoto
SEI TAIZA
3329, Taiza, Tango-cho, Kyotango, Kyoto
Organizers:
TOMORROW, Japan Arts Council, Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan
Supports:
Kyotango City, Kyotango City Board of Education, Kyoto by the Sea DMO
Ajrakh is a traditional block print fabric made in the Kutch region Western India. This fabric was originally made to be worn over the shoulder or wrapped around the head and waist. The basic colors are the blue of Indian indigo, the pale red of Indian akane, and the black of iron oxide, which was used in the past in Japan to blacken teeth. Last year brought unusually heavy rains, which hampered the production of Ajrakh. Our Ajrakh dyeing was also delayed, and Sufiyan, the head of a group of artisans, was beginning to worry. The original Ajrakh often featured geometric patterns s…[Read more]