Boro futon cover, Japan, Taisho (circa 1915), cm 167x112. There is a class of Japanese folk textiles known as boro, which literally translated means "rags" or "ragged." Broadly speaking, boro textiles are the patched, mended and heavily stitched indigo-dyed cotton cloths whose history extends back to the nineteenth century and continues on through the early-to-mid twentieth century, and to fully appreciate they apart from their obvious artistic appeal, one has to delve into their history by understanding something of cotton's cultural significance in Japan. As a matter of fact, however, boro textiles prove to be an aesthetically valuable art form, that mostly appeal to collectors of Contemporary Art, as well as to collectors of Tribal and Outsider Art. What we have here is a boro futon cover for a single bed, made up recycling used fabrics that are first cut into re-usable scraps, and then sewn together to form the futon cover. It is the ‘accidental’ beauty obtained this way, one of the hallmarks for judging the quality of a boro piece. And this is a quality piece, no doubt. For those of you passionate about Contemporary Art, this boro quite resembles certain works from the artist Sean Scully. Simply visually arresting.