In Layering Sukesuke is all in how things show through. NUNO inserts small, light objects between layers of sheer silk organdy to accentuate the translucency. This is much more laborious than it sounds: computer-driven looms must be stopped over and over again, row after row, so that feathers can be hand-positioned. Alternatively, organdy is shot through…

Welcome to an enlightening virtual videoexhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, showcasing the genius ofJapanese Kimono.

Welcome to an enlightening virtual video exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, showcasing the genius of Japanese Kimono.  

Things were different at our recent 10 Day Tokiwa Gallery! Silly! Quirky! Unexpected! Laughable! and Surprising! Starting with a SPECTACULAR SHISHI MAI DANCE performed by Father and Son who live in the neighborhood. Son, an evolved and accomplished 40 year old Down’s Syndrome artist, was the head. Father was the tail. Their teamwork, punctuated by…

On November 15, 2019 our group of travelers had the great privilege of taking an indigo workshop at Buaiso’s home in Tokushima We were welcomed by the young farmers, dyers and business associates who served us lunch and indigo tea. Kakuo Kaji then showed us various methods of resist dyeing and we folded and clamped…

NHK World Video  

Text and Photos by Alice Gordenker Masao Nagata of Nagata Indigo Dyeing Works (長田染工場) in Izumo, Shimane demonstrates their hands-on dyeing process done just as in the olden days before mechanization. First, he moistens the cloth before lowering it into a high-alkaline dye bath of fermented indigo and lye. Indigo appears green when lifted from…

by Amy Katoh After 43 years of Blue & White, my eyes only see BLUE. And it may well be that BLUE is taking over the color spectrum. From the skies, to the rivers to the bridges, and even the netting that surrounds them under repair, BLUE is the reigning color The autumn skies in…

                        NUNO Textile Design Studio presents “suke suke” fabrics,  by weaving sliced strips of metal with conventional yarns to create a shimmery mirage. Japanese Weavers have traditionally used metallic foils in brocade obi sashes and other formal wear. Thin sheets of gold and silver were affixed to washi handmade paper with sulphur or lacquer, then cut into lomg slender…

Buaisou Indigo by Matt Gross from AirBnB Magazine. Introduction by Mora Chartrand Main Article: Buaisou Indigo from AirBnB magazine, written by Matt Gross If there is one color that epitomizes Japan for me, it is indigo — deep, mystical, midnight blue. The oldest evidence tells us that indigo dyeing first appeared in Japan in the…