Boro: The Fabric of Life, on view at Domaine de Boisbuchet through Sept 15, 2013, features Japanese recycled and patch-worked textiles.
Presented in collaboration with Parsons The New School for Design, the exhibition includes more than 50 ingeniously repaired futon covers, kimonos, work garments and other handmade household textiles or "boro" (Japanese for rags), which were created by Japanese peasants between 1850 and 1950 using leftover, indigo dyed cotton.
Damaged and worn garments were often recuperated, repurposed and refashioned by poorer Japanese populations and repeatedly mended from generation to generation without being thrown away.
The results, although once a sign of shame for many, are now recognized as beautiful, ingenious repairs that can inform our current global culture with the Japanese notion of "mottainai" or "waste nothing."
Photos: Domaine de Boisbuchet