Chiso Gallery

Highlight

Introducing various perspectives – from crafts to arts – of the essence of Chiso, a company with some 460 years of business experience.

A collection passed down through the ages as the inheritance of a long-established kyoyuzen dyeing company

From its founding in 1555 as the vestments trading company Hoi-Shozuku to this very day as a family-run yuzensome (dyeing) business, Chiso carries forward a succession of skills and beauty, incorporating kimono techniques and designs into a variety of dyed textile merchandise. The 2nd floor of the main store is dedicated to the Chiso Gallery, a spacious place for exhibiting artworks, such as dyed textiles and paintings, from a collection of approximately 20,000 pieces, ranging diversely from Edo-period kosode (short-sleeved kimono), Meiji-period dyed textile artworks produced by Chiso and their rough sketches, and famous works of art by Japanese painters, led by the Hozugawa-zu-byobu (folding screen painting of Hozugawa River), an Important Cultural Property, by Maruyama Okyo. These collection pieces, which remain a source of inspiration to Chiso to this very day, are rotated several times a year in exhibitions. In August 2020, the gallery will reopen alongside the Chiso main store, so come discover afresh a world of beauty full of history, craft techniques and art in relaxing surroundings, where the aim is to extol the arts.