The Imagine Oneworld Kimono Project seeks to create a collection of 196 kimono, each representing a different country. Currently, 55 have been completed, and the organization has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Japanese website Campfire to help secure the finances it needs for the remaining 141.

Each design will incorporate cues from that nation’s scenic beauty, history and cultural heritage.

Above are working designs for Canada, Germany, Slovakia, Bolivia, Lithuania, Fiji, Cameroon, Italy, Bhutan and Uzbekistan.

Imagine Oneworld hopes to have all 196 kimono competed by 2020, a goal chosen both because of that year’s Tokyo Olympics, and also because the organization says some of the kimono-making techniques it plans to employ are in danger of being lost forever as the few craftspeople skilled in them succumb to old age.

The ambitious crowdfunding project is seeking ¥120 million (US$1.08 million), which will contribute not only to the production of the kimono, but will also be used to organize public exhibitions and maintain the garments’ upkeep (though Imagine Oneworld says the total costs will be far beyond what it hopes to raise through crowdfunding). Pledge tiers start at ¥3,000 (US$26.46), and rewards include iPhone cases and tumblers featuring individual country designs.

Related Stories:
Japan’s hot spring amusement park has opening date, wants 100 million yen in crowdfunding money
Creating a cat island – Japanese organization plans to buy island turn it into kitty paradise
Kimono artisans hope to revive dying industry by taking kimono to New York Fashion Week