Courses
KUMIHIMO
Teacher : Misao Kaji
Misao Kaji was born on 12 February 1928 in Kyoto. She married the President of the Shouen Kumihimo Company in 1953 and after a dedicated study of Kumihimo invented an angle shaped table which is easier to work on than a round one.
She was acknowledged as a Japanese Traditional Craftman in 1978 and since then has been devoting her time and skills to the promotion of Kumihimo. In 1990 she received the Mayor of Uji City Award, and in 1994 she was honoured as the Excellent Craftswoman of Kyoto Traditional Industries. She also received the Excellent Technique Award from the Minister of Labour in 1999.
She is the only person nowadays who can work the most skilful technique called KODAI 68 Bobbins and at the age of 81 she is still very active and travels around Japan promoting Kumihimo.
MOJIRIORI
Teacher : Chieko Hatanaka
Chieko Hatanaka graduated from Tama Fine Arts College in 1970. After undertaking research in the Culture College of Art and Craft Centre she started to teach there. She has been studying Mojiriori since 1973 and has published several books and held exhibitions.
She believes that the technique of Mojiriori started in Peru and China at the same time. Part of her research is based on her collection of Andean cloth that originally belonged to Masako Ishii. One of the pieces in the collection is a cloth that covered a mummy from the Chankay civilization in Peru that prospered from 900 to 1600 AD. She has made many reconstructions of this ancient cloth.
The technique is similar to Sprang but at our workshop participants will use the primitive hand-made looms. It looks complicated but it is much quicker to work once you get the idea of the threads movement.
TEMARI
Teacher : Ayako Masuda
Temari balls are a folk art form that originated in China and was introduced to Japan five or six hundred years ago. Historically, they were constructed from the remnants of old kimonos.
Traditionally, Temari were often given to children by their parents on New Year's Day. Inside the tightly wrapped layers of each ball, the mother would have placed a small piece of paper with a goodwill wish for her child.
As time passed, traditional Temari balls became an art, with the functional stitching becoming more decorative and detailed, until the balls displayed very intricate embroidery.
ROSALINE LACE IN CHAMPAGNE
Teacher : Chieko Miyawaki
Chieko Myawaki has been making lace since 1986 when she attended Kirkley Hall College in the UK with Mrs Gillian Dye as tutor. In 1989 she was the first Japanese student to undertake a 2-year City and Guilds course in Creative Lace. Mrs Pamela Nottingham taught her Bucks Point Lace during this period. In 1992 she started "English Art Bobbin Lace" in Japan and in 1995 won the Yomiuri Newspaper award for "Windermere in late Autumn". She followed this by winning in the Chairman Award at the Lace Guild in the UK in 1998 and the Yomiuri and Nihon TV Bunka Centre prize in 2000.
In 2002 in Belgium she obtained a Diploma in Rosaline Lace.
Chieko Miyawaki designs and makes her original lace as well as giving lessons. She holds exhibitions to promote bobbin lace making.
DESIGN YOUR ORIGINAL LACE
Teacher : Kumiko Nakazaki
Kumiko Nakazaki has studied lace at "Kantcentrum" in Bruges, Belgium since 1998. She started publishing pattern folders in 1998 and to date has had 9 folders published worldwide.
In this course she will help you to make your own design, diagram and pricking in Binch, Flanders, Duchesse etc. As a memento of OIDFA Japan she has prepared some very Japanese designs for you, such as designs of Japanese tissue and Japanese characters.
This course is for those who want to make personal and unique lace from their own design.