Compositional relationality of indigenous textiles as reflected on Ainu garments

Textile management in museums and research institutions is undergoing a paradigm shift, driven by Indigenous communities who challenge Western-centric approaches to interpreting material heritage. The Ainu are Indigenous people of Yaun Mosir/Hokkaido, Karapto/Sakhalin, and the Kuril/Chishima Islands who currently reside mostly in Japan. The cultural meanings embedded in Ainu textiles require recovery. This study examined Ainu textile patterns by integrating material-based and sociological paradigms of fashion studies with Indigenous know-hows through a proposed lens of compositional relationality. The study utilised digital photographs and related data from 393 items housed at the National Museum of Ethnology. Networks were constructed and measured to identify patterns that were frequently used together, as well as those occurring rarely, and to visualise pattern usage over time. The study argues that compositional relationality can contribute to the recovery of the cultural meaning of Indigenous textiles, and provide recommendations for future studies.