京友禅染 (Traditional Kyoto fabric dyeing technique) workshop @ Pagong

Event report:

Japanese by Manami

English by Cathy Cawood

 日本独特の柄を友禅染で美しくシルクの生地に映し出す

その技術は、長年の経験ある職人しか

完璧なものは作り出せません。

友禅染は本来、着物の生地を染める技術でした。

しかし時代の変化速く、着物から洋服へと日本の‘服’

のスタイルが変化し、着物の友禅染が減少していったのです。

そこで、友禅染の美しさ・日本の独特な柄を現代にも受け継ぎたい

という志のもと、パゴンは着物からアロハシャツ（洋服）へと

友禅染を進化させてきました。

今ではアロハシャツだけでなく、女性の服やバックやスカーフ等

幅広い展開をしています。

今回、そんな貴重な友禅染を職人さんの指導のもと

パゴンの大きな染め物工場でワークショップを開催しました。

10人限定という限られた人数しか参加できなかったため

告知後すぐに予約メールが殺到しました。

日本人の方の参加希望も多い中、外国の方からの予約メールも

たくさんいただきました。

普通の生活をしていると、

友禅染にはなかなか触れないものですよね。

京都では伝統的な‘友禅流し’というものがあって

その時期に友禅染を見る、ということはあるかもしれませんが。

でも、自分の手で染めるなんて珍しい体験だと思います。

参加者のみなさん、来たときからもうやる気満々で

ワークショップが始まったら真剣そのものの顔。

ワークショップ後はパゴンの社長亀田さんに

たくさんの質問が寄せられていました。

約２時間のイベントでしたが、1人1人が貴重な体験と共に

楽しい時間を過ごしていただけたかな？

こういう伝統的なもののワークショップをもっと

開催して「日本の素敵なもの」を海外の方に

‘肌’で感じて親しんでもらいたい！

日本にはたーっくさん、

‘すてきなもの’が詰まっています！

もっともっとWe Are Oneのイベントで

そういうものを紹介していけたらいいなと思います。

コラボレーションしてくださったパゴンの

みなさんにも感謝の気持ち一杯です。

パゴンの詳しい情報はこちら

English website: http://www.pagong.jp/en/

日本語サイト: http://www.pagong.jp/

In the early 1900s in Japan, most Japanese women and many Japanese men still wore kimono every day. There was a huge industry built around the production of kimonos. Kyoto was famous for yuzen dyeing, a process where beautiful designs were screen printed onto cloth for kimonos. However as Japan westernized and people adapted western styles of dress, many of the traditional dye houses in Kyoto disappeared forever.

Twenty years ago one of the remaining yuzen dye houses began to make western clothing from traditionally dyed cloth. It all began with one aloha shirt. The shirt attracted a lot of attention when it was worn to a summer festival, so the company began to produce a line of aloha shirts. Today that company is Pagong. They have a chain of trendy stores full of beautiful clothes, and the cloth that they produce is in demand with fashion designers all over the world.

I was both interested and excited to join a small factory tour and hands-on workshop organized by We Are One. We assembled outside Pagong's main branch in Gojo Street near Nishioji Street. The friendly staff in the store put our bags in a safe place, then gave us aprons and strips of cloth with individual numbers on them. The company boss himself led us through the carpark to the factory behind the store. We crowded into a room with lots of small pots of dye covering the floor, and one of the craftsmen showed us the thick consistency of the glue that gets mixed with the dye colors before it is applied to the cloth. In the pots the dye all looked pretty much the same color, but they assured us the colors were completely different on the cloth.

Next we entered a very long room where lengths of fabric were being screen printed. A craftsman was moving a screen along a length of cloth being printed with a design of white opium poppies on a yellow ground. I was amazed at the speed he could work at! The incline board on which the fabric lay was heated, and over our heads (in fact, level with the heads of the taller people) were vents for hot air. They need to maintain a constant warm temperature to dry the dye quickly. In summer the place is like a sauna!

In that room we each got to try out screen printing a fish design onto a small square of cotton knit, then we headed up to the second floor for the main hands-on experience. When we registered for the event we were given a choice of two designs - one of peony flowers, and the other of a huge oni (demon) dangling a small oni by the foot. Both designs were gradually built up by printing six different colored screens. Each person had a piece of white cotton laid before them on the heated incline board. We were shown how to position the first screen on the fabric, squirt the thick ink (imagine very dark ketchup!) in a line along the top of the screen, and wipe it down over the design with a rubber squeegee. There was a huge variation between different people in the result. The amount of dye, the pressure on the squeegee, and the speed at which the dye is moved across the screen all affect the outcome. Although there were only two designs, each person's work was unique.

After printing each screen, the dye was given time to dry (perhaps 5 minutes) before the next screen was applied. Once the six layers were completed we each signed our print with a small brush. Finally we put the numbered strip of cloth we were given at the start on the incline board - so that Pagong will know who to post each print to!

The final stage of our fun afternoon was a question and answer session over cold tea (very welcome after the hot workshop) in a meeting room above the store. The walls were decorated with Pagong's wonderful colorful designs, including the company's very first design, a combination of waves (symbolizing eternity) and archery targets. Although the design is almost a hundred years old, it still looks fresh and modern. Recently a Paris designer chose that very fabric to design a dress for a fashion show. The dress will go on display at Takashimaya in Kyoto from the 15th of this month. 

This workshop was a very interesting experience for me... I'm so glad I had the opportunity to take part in it. Thanks for organizing it, We Are One!

みなさん、京友禅染というものをご存知でしょうか？

京友禅染とは、白い生地の上に染料で絵を描くように模様を後から染めていく方法で作られるものをいい、京都にあるに西陣織とはまた違ったものなのです！

Do you know what is Kyo Yuzen ？

Kyo Yuzen is a traditional dyeing technique done on white fabrics such that it has an effect of pictures seem to have been drawn on it. It is a different technique from 西陣織 in Kyoto. 

実は2011/6/11(土)、伝統的に京友禅を作り続けている「パゴン」とコラボレーションし、京友禅染のワークショップを行います！

京友禅染は、染料や道具等とても複雑で普通で、なかなか体験することができないものです。今回は柄（型）が2種類用意されており、その型にそって染めていきます。きっとあなたにとって貴重な体験になるはず！

ちなみに今回のワークショップは無料＋10人までの限定付きで行いますので、早めにご予約ください!!

On 11^th June (Sat), We Are One Japan will be collaborating with one such　Kyo Yuzen company, Pagong, to conduct a Kyo Yuzen workshop for everyone. Kyo Yuzen is a completed technique that involves many dyes and tools, hence such opportunity to have a first hand experience in Kyo Yuzen is hard to come by. This time, you will be making one of the two designs prepared by Pagong using the Kyo Yuzen technique, and we will be sending your work to you after further processing.

What’s more! This workshop is free-of-charge but limited to 10 participants. So sign-up with us now to reserve a place. 

参加したい!!という方は、we.are.one.japan@gmail.com

まで以下の項目を記入し予約メールをお願いします！

＊   人数制限により予約がすでに埋まってしまっている場合がございます。ご了承ください。


＊今回の応募は終了させていただきました。たくさんのご応募誠にありがとうございました。

①名前

②国籍

③住所（染めた製品を郵送させていただきます。）

④（A）か（B）どちらかの柄をお選びください。

Please send us the following information to we.are.one.japan@gmail.com

1. Name
2. Nationality
3. Address (we will send your work to you by post after the workshop.)
4. Your choice of design: A or B

*The signing-up for this event has ended. Thank you for all your interest and we regret that not all who registered this time are able to attend due to limited space. 
 (A)

(B)

日時：2011/6/11, 14:30~ (約２時間ほど)

集合場所と時間：Pagong 本店前に14:30(遅刻は厳禁でお願いします!)

＊当日は汚れてもよい服でお越し下さい！！

場所：パゴン 本店 (http://www.pagong.jp/shopinfo/index.html)

            京都市右京区西院西溝崎町17

            ℡: 075-322-2391

・   京都駅から…市バス「73」(乗り場C5)　約25分

「中ノ橋五条」で下車。

30mほど戻っていただくと本店のショーウィンドウがございます。

タクシーをご利用の場合は約10分でお越し頂けます。

・   阪急西院から…徒歩役15分。

西大路大通りを南へ。五条通を西に進んでいただくと南側にパゴン本店のショーウインドウがございます。

（ショッピングモール京都ハナの向かい側）

　　　＊車でお越しの方には駐車場をご用意しております。

Date & Time:     11^th June Saturday 14:30

Address: Pagong, headquater (http://www.pagong.jp/shopinfo/index.html)

            京都市右京区西院西溝崎町17

            ℡: 075-322-2391

・   From Kyoto Station, take bus 73 (from C5) Approx 25 min

Alight at 「中ノ橋五条」

Walk in the reverse direction for about 30m, you will see the shop with the big Pagong sign above.

10min by Taxi.

・   From Kankyu Sai-in Station, 15min by foot.

Go south along Nishiojiodori. Then, go west into Gojodori, the shop is on the south side.

　　　＊Car-park available.

パゴンとは？

日本の美しい文化を反映させた様々な着物の図案。それを現代の人々に知ってもらい、そして手に取っていただこうと思い立ち製作されたのが“京友禅アロハシャツ”でした。現在ではあるはシャツだけではなく、女性用の服やスカーフ、バックなど京友禅を使用した美しい商品が数多くあり、多くの人々から人気を博しています。パゴンについてもっと知りたい方はこちらへ▶

English website: http://www.pagong.jp/en/

日本語サイト: http://www.pagong.jp/

Pagong is a clothing brand from Kyoto that combines Western modernity with Japanese tradition. We make contemporary everyday fashion handcrafted with Kyoto’s centuries old yuzen dyeing tradition.