Tag: Traditional Crafts

A female traditional craftsman that Japan can be proud of

Ueda Tamako, a female traditional craftsperson who has been featured on this website, won the Kanto Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry Director's Award and the Dyeing Art Exhibition Award, the exhibition's top prizes, at the "Somegei Exhibition," a Tokyo hand-painted yuzen competition and exhibition that is held over three days every year, which was held for a half day this time only for those involved due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Ueda listens carefully to the thoughts and feelings of her clients and then puts her heart into creating her pieces, fully incorporating those thoughts.

In parallel with this, for the KIMONO PROJECT, a major project to create furisode (long-sleeved kimono) inspired by 196 countries and regions around the world in preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, she created a wonderful furisode kimono that embodies a strong desire for peace, with thoughts directed towards the people of Afghanistan, the country suffering the most from war in the world

Video of the 100-nation Completion Ceremony: Work by Ueda Tamako, 3 minutes 48 seconds -
In today's world, only flashy things are talked about, but "compassion" and "warmth" are always more modest. Ueda's thoughts, which are put into each piece, brighten our spirits, just like when we wear a colorful furisode kimono. Looking at Ueda, I could really feel that God is "watching over us."

We will introduce the works of Group Takumi, a group of female traditional craftspeople who have inherited traditional techniques and are producing wonderfully creative works

Works by the group of female traditional craftspeople "Group Takumi"

Currently, Japan has approximately 210 nationally designated traditional craft production areas, and approximately 4,600 nationally certified "traditional craftspeople" who have inherited their respective crafts. Of these, over 560 are women. Among them, Group Takumi is made up of 12 female traditional craftspeople who
share the aspirations of "spreading the wonder of traditional crafts to the world," "bringing joy to many people, and making the world a better place." This
group of female traditional craftspeople is dedicated to creating new value in traditional crafts, without being bound by conventional techniques.
Take, for example, Ueda Tamae, a traditional craftsperson of Tokyo Tegaki Yuzen.
We will introduce Ueda's Tegaki Yuzen approach. Typically, patterns are created on fabric using petroleum-based paraffin wax. After dyeing the fabric, the petroleum-based wax is removed, leaving the waxed areas white.
After hearing about Ueda's efforts in wax- resist provided him with CERARICA
Ueda used our CERARICA Coating instead of petroleum-based paraffin wax to create Tokyo Tegaki Yuzen.
to Ueda about his experience using CERARICA he shared an interesting story: CERARICA
He elaborated, "When creating patterns with paraffin, the heat from melting the paraffin can sometimes cause the wax-dyed areas to turn yellow. Furthermore, the use of solvents to remove the wax-resist dye raises health concerns." However, when using our product, Ueda was impressed by how "the wax-dyed areas were less likely to discolor, and the designs were able to be drawn more clearly."
They also said, "When I use paraffin wax, my hands become rough and sore after working, but CERARICA coating is gentle on the skin and my hands feel smooth after working."
I am deeply moved by their determination and their unexpectedly innovative efforts to continue thinking for themselves and discovering new techniques and charms, regardless of traditional techniques.

Tokyo Hand-painted Yuzen Traditional Craftsman, Ueda Tamako's Work

Works by Taeko Aoki, a traditional craftsman at the Imari and Nabeshima ware kiln "Kosengama"

Hakata Dolls - Works by traditional craftsman Akiko Inoue