Japanese Dyed Fabrics

7/25/2019 Japanese Dyed Fabrics

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Document by: Meetika Jadwani


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The Art

The elaborate and opulentdesigns and patterns and colorsof Japanese textiles are whathave made them worldfamous. Traditional Japanesetextile surface design is quite

unique and immediatelyrecognizable. This is due insome part to the two-dimensional nature of thekimono and how Japanesedesign proclivities for such agarment wrapped andembellished the human body.Even a brief glance at historicaland contemporary kimonoreveals that the varioustechniques of dyeing reachedgreat heights of complexity andflexibility in Japan.



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Unresisted Dyeing

Dyeing a fabric directly is ofcourse the simplest and mostobvious means of rendering colorand design. Two methods wereused in Japan: immersion dyeingand painting. The former involvesdipping a textile in a dye, and the

latter is brushing on color. Bothmay be taken to heights ofcomplexity, with multipledippings of given areas innumerous colors, and a textileused as a surface for the paintingof an artist's dream. Blockprinting is another form of directdyeing, but it never reached the

heights in Japan that it did inother areas of Asia, particularlyIndia and Indonesia. Both dippingand painting find their highestmanifestation used incombination with one or moretypes of resist dyeing.



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Resist and Resist andResist

Japan's dyeing techniques centeron two basic types of resistdyeing--paste resist (whichincludes stencil dyeing), andshaped resist (shibori). A resist isjust what the word implies, asubstance or process that stops

dye from dyeing the fabric incertain places. (Wax resist waswell developed in the 8th century,but had died out by the 10th andwas revived in modern times.)Paste resist may be divided intofreehand resist applied by asqueeze cone (Japanese:tsutsugaki) and stencil dyeing

(katazome). The former is usedmost often in the techniqueknown asyuzen, which usuallyincorporates other methods ofembellishment, and in indigo folktextiles, while the latter isubiquitous.



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Shibori

"Shibori" is often translated "as tie-dye," but this easy label is far toolimited.Shiboriis a galaxy of resisttechniques, all involving shaping thefabric in different ways then securingor binding it tightly so that dye doesnot affect the cloth where it issecured. The variety of techniques is

truly astounding, varying from thefamiliar tie-dye to a wide range ofstitched-and-bound techniques towinding and binding cloth to cores ofdifferent materials and sizes tofolding and clamping betweenboards and the exotic and wonderfultub-stuffing resist. Though shiboriispracticed in many other parts of theworld, including techniques not

found in Japan, and has historicalimportance, no single region has asmany techniques as Japan. Theserendipitous accidental effects thathappen with shiboriare part of thetechnique's charm and areparticularly dramatic with cotton andindigo.



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Squeeze Cones

A paper cone stiffened andwaterproofed with persimmontannin is used to squeeze outrice paste onto a textilesurface, delineating color areasand resisting other areas. The

designs are entirely freehand,and the technical flexibility andfreedom of expression arelimited only by thecraftsperson's own creativity.Indigo folk textiles such as quiltcovers, hangings, and splitcurtains (noren), displaycomplex, polychrome designsof felicitous motifs made withthis technique.



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Stencils

Japanese textile-dyeing stencilsthemselves are works of art and arecollected. Their making and cuttingis an independent craft, and stencilcutters have been designated "LivingNational Treasures" by thegovernment. Simply, three sheets ofthe finestgradeof handmademulberry paperare coated and glued

together with persimmon tannin,smoked for durability, aged, andthen the designs are cut. Even thecutting tools are wonders ofcraftsmanship, and watching thecutting is like experiencing a form ofmusic.

Rice-paste resist is applied throughthe stencils, which are removed, thecloth is then dyed, and the process is

repeated as many times as desired.Removing the paste is done simplyby washing (wax resist is muchharder to remove). Amazinglydelicate, minute patterns (komon) aswell as bold design are both possiblewith stencils. The Okinawanbingatadyeing displays a complex use ofstencils.

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Yuzen

The name of this techniqueappears often in art books, butfew adequate descriptions arefound in English. One reason isbecause it is so complex;basicallyyuzenis a mixture offreehand paste resist and

painting, and it also mayinclude stencil and shiboriwork.The decorative flexibilitypossible with this combinationof techniques is unsurpassed.Design motifs are first outlinedin paste resist, then the dyesare applied in such a way as to

give subtle gradation of tone.Both delicacy andextravagance are characteristicofyuzen, and traditional motifsand decorative concepts aremost common. Embroideryand gold leaf application oftenfinish ayuzencomposition.



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There are two types of yuzen. One is a freehand paste resist and painting technique and the other employs stencils. Each has its ownhistory and production process. Explained below in a simplified form are the main stages of freehand yuzen. This is the present form ofthe original technique developed by Miyazaki Yuzen, a fan painter who was active in Kyoto during the 17th century. The technique wasintroduced to Nagoya by craftsmen from Kyoto and Edo (Tokyo) during the 1730s when the seventh head of the Owari clan Muneharuwas in power, and a simplified style of handling the color in keeping with the modest, frugal character of the clan became established.



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Step I

Basic Design: Using a fugitivedye, the design is painted ontowhite silk, which has be tackedup into the shape of a kimono.The fugitive dye is made froman extract obtained from the

day flower and washes out withwater. Many of the designsused for Nagoya yuzen areclassical in charactercomprising flowers, plants,birds and scenes of nature.



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Step 2

Line Resist: Using what lookslike an icing gun, a rice-pasteresist is trailed around theoutline of the design. The resistis made to a special recipe bycooking a glutinous rice inpowder form with water and a

little salt, to which zinc dust isadded. Outlining the elementsof the design in this wayprevents colors bleeding intoeach other when the body ofthe design is dyed. Theuntacked cloth is stretched outand held taught widthwise by

bows of bamboo with pins ateither end. Doing this, ofcourse, may distort the design,so it is important that the lineof resist faithfully follows theoutline of the design.



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Step 3

Coloring the Elements: This stageof the work is critical to the finalquality of the cloth. Using brushesloaded with the dye, the areaswithin the outlines are colored,working from the pale colors first.Because there is a possibility that

the resist will be softened by thewater in the dye and that colorsmay bleed as the line resistexpands, the cloth is suspendedover a small charcoal brasier orelectric ring to dry the dyes asthey are applied. Several differentkinds of brushes are useddepending on the area being

dyed, the amount of detail and ifcolors need to be worked into oneanother. One is peculiar toNagoya yuzen. It is a flat brushwith the hair cut at an angle and isused to grade colors. When all theelements have been colored, thedye is fixed by steaming the cloth.



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Step 4

Design Resist: In order toprevent the design from beingdyed with the backgroundcolor, a rice-paste resist is laidover the whole design. Theresist is made in the same way

as the line resist. When this hasbeen completed the cloth isdusted with fine saw dust,which not only accelerates thedrying time of the resist butalso prevents the resist fromstraying onto other parts of thecloth.



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Step 5 & 6

Brush Dyeing: The cloth isstrung out between twocolumns at a workable height,and stretched widthwise usingthe bamboo bowed stretcherplaced at intervals of 30 cm.

Although the background dyeis now simply brushed on with awide brush, it takes a great dealof skill to be able to do itevenly. In order to dye theblack background for a type offormal kimono, a veryparticular technique calledtorobiki-zome is employed. Aglutinous type of rice is mixedinto a hot solution containingthe black dyestuff and this isthen brushed onto the cloth, toproduce a rich lustrous black.

Step 6

Finishing: After the residues of dyeand resist have been washed out ofthe cloth, it is steamed and pulledback into shape, and additions aremade to the design and color. Detailssuch as the finer parts of flowers and

people's eyes, which could not bedone when the main elements of thedesign were being dyed, are painted innow. Gold and silver lines and areas ofgold leaf may also be added tocomplete the work before the patternis matched and the cloth is finallysewn up into a kimono.



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Typical of cotton tie-dyeing, there are some 100 different tying techniques used in the production ofmulticolored designs for formal kimono and unlined yukata. The most representative of these techniquesare nui shibori, kumo shibori, miura shibori, kanoko shibori or the well known "fawn spot" tie-dyeing, andsekka shibori. A very particular effect is produced by varying the strength of the dye when indigo is used.



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Stencil Cutting: Stencils are cut following the design.

Stenciling the Underdrawing: The design is stenciled onto the cloth usinga hot water soluble fugitive dye extracted from the dayflower.

Tying: The cloth is now tied with a cotton thread. Development of thistechnique now means that there are more than one hundred methods oftying the cloth.

Dyeing: The tied cloth is dyed. This process needs to be repeated morethan 20 times to dye a whole 12 meter roll of kimono cloth. If it is amulticolored design, a number of different methods are employedbetween the tying and dyeing.

Untying: After the dyeing is complete, the cloth is well dried before thecotton ties are removed. Because the cotton ties are tied so tightly, caremust be taken not to damage the cloth, which is now steamed to iron outthe wrinkles.



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Japanese Dyed Fabrics

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