Japanese Bathers, Meiji Era

These hand painted images of Geisha and Maiko (apprentices) are over a century old, but in my eyes they couldn't be more contemporary. During the Meiji era, dating from 1886 to 1912, Japanese society moved beyond isolation and feudalism opening its doors to the world. And that is encapsulated here, with Geisha modelling cutting-edge swimwear far beyond the traditional kimono, and reaching both domestic and global fame. Thanks to Okinawa Soba's flickr stream this once ubiquitous collection of postcards is once again available to the world.