8 April - 1 October 2000
gemeentemuseum den haag
stadhouderslaan 41
nl - 2501 cb den haag
tel +31 0 70 33 81 111

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The exhibition is timed to coincide with the four hundredth anniversary of the arrival of the first Dutch merchant ship in Japan. This was to be the start of a flourishing trade between the Netherlands and Japan. It would introduce the Netherlands to a range of new products, including the Japanese kimono. Then known in the Netherlands as a 'japonse rok' (Japanese gown), this archetypal Japanese garment became all the fashion in the 17th and 18th centuries. It still influences many of today's fashion designers, including Lehl. He produces a westernised version of traditional Japanese layered clothing, takes the shawl as a starting-point for combinations with other items of clothing.

Fig.: Portrait Jürgen Lehl