This lavishly illustrated book showcases fifty-five masterworks by Japanese kimono artist Itchiku Kubota (1917-2003). Initially determined to unlock the secrets of dyed and painted Japanese textiles of the fourteenth to early seventeenth centuries, Kubota ultimately invented a unique method of decoration. His work combines stitch-resist and ink drawing with a complex layering of color to achieve hauntingly beautiful landscapes with richly textured surfaces and an impressionistic rendering of nature never before seen in the textile arts.Although Kubota produced kimono for Japanese celebrities, his primary endeavor was the creation of a series of monumental kimonos intended only for display. Mount Fuji, Universe, and the thirty-four-piece Symphony of Light are his most important series. The latter two are intended to be shown sequentially, much like the panels of a Japanese screen or decorated sliding doors. This entirely new approach to the use of the kimono as a vehicle for pictorial imagery has enabled Kubota's work to reach beyond the traditional boundaries of the single garment and elevated his work to installation art.