Portrait of Yuh Okano
< Back to Directory

Yuh Okano

About the Artist

Yuh Okano Yuh works with several quality textiles and processes
including silk and Shibori ( Traditional tie dye technique ). Yuh creates stunning surfaces that project three-dimensional illusions. Her scarves are fun and fanciful, soft with flow and energy, bringing to mind features of coral and sea animals immersed under water.
 Yuh learned her basic design skills in Tokyo, and then came to the US and completed her education at the Rhode Island School of Design in 1991. She has shared her ideas and taught all over the world. In the late 90’s Yuh’s distinct ability and flair began attracting prominent clients. Her expertise and work was sought by fashion and fiber art. Her creations were included in Donna Karan and Martha Stewart collections. Shortly thereafter, TextilesYuh was born, 2000. From her new studio in Chestertown MD, (Brooklyn New York based for 20 years), Yuh continues to develop and define her exceptional concepts, including “Structure and Surface,” a contemporary Japanese textile at Museum of Modern Art NY. Yuh exhibits extensively in the United States including Smithsonian Craft Show Washington DC, American Craft Exposition Chicago, and American Craft Council show, San Francisco, Baltimore.

Yuh Okano website View Website Yuh Okano website Purchase Art

Artist's Statement

In Yuh’s art and design practice, her focus is first and foremost on the raw materials, interrogating either their latent qualities or their relationship with man and nature. She looks carefully at both the mysterious products of the natural world, and the artificial fabrics that can be freely created today thanks to vast range of chemical technologies. Each work is developed by maintaining a close bond between Yuh’s artistic expression and the economic and creative value inherent in the material she uses.

Featured Work

Photos

Yuh Okano's signature fiber in art, this piece is part of the Museum of Modern Art's design collection. Inspired by the swelling of the sea and its creatures, ebbs and flows like the tides and calls to mind seaweed, coral, jellyfish, and sea urchins. The two-toned colors, like the floating sea, gradually merge into the bubbles of the fabric. This is handmade using shibori dyeing techniques, which give the fabric its flowing and delicate texture while simultaneously imbuing it with an exuberant depth of color.  
The vibrant petals look like they have been scattered by the wind, and the fabric's cotton-polyester blend and hand-pleated design accentuate this movement. The two-toned dye and devoré painting technique create semi-transparent petals, with the fabric surging into life like a tree that has been awaiting spring all winter long and finally blossoms in the warm air. The petals drift down, and the fabric is like a soft hand ready to hold onto the beautiful and ethereal energy of spring. Wearable in art.
Like the forest floor after a long and refreshing rain, this scarf is dark and shiny, exuding the spirit of new life and the beginning of growth from its depths. It is inspired by the epidermis of the forest, with its dual textures, the leaves of Shibori hand-pleated polyester and the essence of soil influenced cashmere wool. The wearable art piece gives a sense of depth and bestows true comfort. This design is an excellent option for any moment where fashion is quintessential yet a soft and elegant quality is also the aim.
Inspired by the swelling of the sea and its creatures, flows like the tides and calls to mind seaweed. This handmade fiber is used shibori dyeing techniques, which creates the depth and layers of transparency.
Plants give off a powerful vitality that enters the heart. Representing light and shadow with organic shapes gives a rich and botanical feeling to this Silk fiber. Inspired by elements of nature such as soil, tree bark, the change of seasons, and observing the serenity of natural light as it passes through a forest, is designed to convey the peacefulness of nature.
Inspired by the swelling of the sea and its creatures, this scarf ebbs and flows like the tides and calls to mind seaweed, coral, jellyfish, and sea urchins. The three-toned colors, like the floating sea, gradually merge into the bubbles of the fabric. This scarf is handmade using shibori dyeing techniques, which give the fabric its flowing and delicate texture while simultaneously imbuing it with an exuberant depth of color.