Unknown Maker, Japanese

The Japanese art of resist dyeing known as katazome has been practiced since the Genroku era (1688 -1704). Katagami, a stencil made of mulberry (ko¯zo) paper, is integral to this textile printing process. On view in this case are examples illustrating the variety of pattern and line quality the practice of katazome-style printing

makes possible. In order to achieve the various effects, a range of tools is used to punch (do¯gubori), drill (kiribori), or cut (tsukibori) away the paper, which is protected and strengthened by layering the sheets and coating them in a wash of persimmon tannin (shibu). The stencils displayed here all date to the Meiji period

(1868 -1912), the last true period of the katagami before the advent of modern silkscreen printing. An artist’s rendering of what the printed blue-andwhite textile would look like is displayed alongside each stencil.