richard tomlinson

Hello all

I have recently become interested in Asian textiles, especially Japanese ‘tsutsugaki’ ones.

For those of you unfamiliar with this technique, I include a Wikipedia definition;

"Tsutsugaki (筒描 is a Japanese term for the practice of drawing designs in rice paste on cloth, dyeing the cloth, and then washing the paste off.

The rice paste is typically made from sweet rice, which has a high starch content and is therefore rather sticky. The paste is applied through a tube (the tsutsu) similar to the tubes which are used by bakers to decorate cakes. A related process is to apply the paste through a stencil; that is called katazome.

The cloth is typically cotton, and the dye is typically indigo, so the design is usually white on blue. Banners for shops or other purposes are sometimes made in this manner.

The designs are often creatures from Japanese mythology such as the crane or the tortoise, or a family crest, or a name (written in kanji). Flowers and trees are common motifs as well."

Reference: Wikipedia

Items that include this technique are ‘furoshiki’ or cloths used to wrap things, ‘futonji’ or futon bed covers, ‘tansu’ or furniture covers, and clothing such as kimono.

Typically, items are homespun and home dyed cotton. Most are woven in narrow bands which are then joined to make the final item.

I particularly like green dyed pieces - here is an example of a furoshiki wrapping cloth that I own. In one corner is a ‘kamon’ or family crest and in the other, Japanese kanji script, most likely the name of the family.






And here’s a tansu cover that measures 7 x 4 feet.





Items date from the 1800’s right up to present day. I would guess my pieces are from around 1920-40.

Tsutsugaki pieces command widely different prices as do other rugs and textiles.


As I am a novice, I was hoping someone could shed some light on how to date these pieces. Colour? Thickness of cotton? Design? I am confused as I have seen very similar looking pieces priced very differently.

And how would one tell the difference between a tsutsugaki and a katazome? The precision of drawing?

Any input would be most welcomed.

Regards

Richard Tomlinson

Louis Dubreuil

Hello Richard

Those textiles are always very graphic with bold design. Maybe you can have some informations on them and on dating if you go to tribaltextiles.info. This is a dicussion forum, like turkotek about ethnic textiles, especially asian ones.
It is quite easy to post (you have to register ) and to send pictures. Answers are often very well documented and friendly.

Cordialement

louis

Steve Price

Hi Louis

Thanks for the link and reminder. That's an excellent site that kind of fell off my radar screen awhile ago. The readership is mostly interested in southeast Asian tribal textiles rather than the more formal weavings of Japan, but there are almost certainly people in their group who know a lot about those, too.

Regards

Steve Price

Dinie Gootjes

Hi Richard,

Nice to hear from you again. I don't know anything about those textiles, but just as a fun fact: the kanji symbols on your first cloth mean 'mountain' (you can see three mountain peaks) and 'above' (the ground with something above it). I am reasonably, but not completely, sure that it is the Japanese family name Yamakami with a meaning like "on top of the mountain".
Good luck in your search for information.

Dinie

Chuck Wagner

Hi Richard,

Long time no post (or, I missed them). Glad to see you back again.

I wonder why they didn't just use wax, like ordinary batik. Thoughts ? Does the rice paste impart any particular character or residual color to the cloth ?

Regards,
Chuck Wagner

richard tomlinson

Hi again

Louis - thanks for pointing me to the tribaltextiles.info website. Amazingly, they cover almost every country in Asia EXCEPT Japan ???

Dinie - thanks, yes, the 1st character is YAMA meaning mountain. The 2nd is, I believe, GUCHI - hence the name Yamaguchi.

Chuck - I have no answer to your question. I guess different countries have different practices. Bogolanfini mudcloth from Mali is dyed with a mud solution!

I cannot find much info on the web re: tsutsugaki dyeing and identification. There seem to be a few books for sale though I am not sure which is the best.

Regards
Richard

Marla Mallett

Richard,
In my website JAPANESE TEXTILES section I have a short bibliography with notes on the best books I've found dealing with tsutsugaki, as well as katazome and several other processes. www.marlamallett.com/japanese.htm

Chuck,
The Japanese no doubt ask why all those other folks use wax instead of rice paste...when the paste is so much easier, neater, more precise, doesn't produce all that annoying crackling, and can even be boiled. Occasional futonji do appear that are batik, but the paste resist is preferred, as it is for the most prized yuzen-decorated kimono.

Marla

Steve Price

Hi Marla

Japanese no doubt ask why all those other folks use wax instead of rice paste...when the paste is so much easier, neater, more precise, doesn't produce all that annoying crackling, and can even be boiled.

Last, but not least, you can make wonderful New Year sweets out of the leftover rice paste. Leftover wax isn't very tasty.

Regards

Steve Price

Marla Mallett

Richard,

I neglected to answer your question about the difference between katazome and tsutsugaki textile designs. They are actually quite different in character.

Tsutsugaki designs are mostly linear. Katazome stenciled designs are mainly used for repeat patterns. Just think about cutting a stencil: you can use all kinds of small intricate design parts, but the cut-out areas must be separated so that the stencil doesn't fall apart. Some of these designs are incredibly intricate, with a multitude of tiny dots, and other small parts. Many people collect the stencils themselves, as many are beautiful objects.

Marla

Chuck Wagner

Hi Marla,

Thanks for the observations on practicality of rice paste. Indeed, the cracking and associated leakage is a little like abrash in a rug, an acquired taste and only pleasant under some circumstances.


I accept your comment on batik and precision as a generally applicable observation. But in detail, I think it gets down to the skill & patience of the artist - regardez:





Regards,
Chuck Wagner