LINDSBORG — The Birger Sandzén Memorial Gallery will host a lecture on Japanese kimono history by Dr. Karen Mack at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 3, at the gallery, located at 401 North First Street in Lindsborg. Her presentation, “From Geisha to Formal – The Roots of Modern Formal Kimono,” will focus on Japanese kimono and will be of special interest to kimono aficionados everywhere.

She will first introduce “What is kimono?” continuing on to “From formal to informal – the styles of modern kimono,” before leading into the main topic of the roots of modern kimono styles, the debt they owe to geisha fashion, and how that came to be. Additionally, a selection of kimonos will be on display, courtesy of the Historic Costume and Textile Museum at Kansas State University. 

The Edo (Tokyo) geisha were the fashion leaders of Japan from the late Edo period (early 19th century) through the Meiji era (1868-1912). When modern kimono styles became codified from the late 19th century to the early 20th century, the most formal styles of modern kimono did not come from the ruling class of the samurai, but rather from the fashionable geisha entertainment world.

Karen J Mack is an assistant professor at Atomi Women’s University in Tokyo. She has a Ph.D. from the University of Kansas in Japanese Heian period (794-1185) Buddhist art. Dr. Mack lives in Tokyo and wears a kimono on a daily basis. She has been working on the history of kimono fashion for over a decade, particularly kimono fashion from the early 17th to the early 20th century as seen in images and text.

This talk is a part of the Silk Road Through Kansas, a year-long series of exhibitions and special events highlighting cultural intersections between Asian countries and the United States. Museums across the state are collaborating, including the Beach Museum of Art at Kansas State University, the Birger Sandzén Memorial Gallery, the Mulvane Museum of Art at Washburn University, the Spencer Museum of Art at the University of Kansas, and the Ulrich Museum of Art at Wichita State University.

There is no charge for the lecture. For more information, call 785-227-2220 or email fineart@sandzen.org.