What is Ise Katagami?

Ise Katagami is hand-carved Japanese paper used for dyeing fabrics such as kimonos. It has a history of more than 1,000 years, and during the Edo period, it prospered with the development of kimono culture in Kyoto and Edo, spread throughout the country, and is now designated as a national traditional craft.

The brown stencil paper for Ise Katagami is made by layering Mino washi paper with persimmon tannin (fermented persimmon juice) and reinforcing it, then drying it in the sun and drying it repeatedly.

Making stencil paper is also a craftsman's job, but the stencils that carving craftsmen skillfully use carving knives on the stencil paper can be said to be the ultimate beauty born by pursuing the limits of handwork. .

Ise Katagami was born in Shiroko,Suzuka City

About 40 minutes by express train from Nagoya, you will arrive at Shiroko, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture. When you take a walk from Shiroko Station to the Suzuka City Traditional Crafts Center , you can see old buildings and a river that flows through the town. In the past, many craftsmen lined up in Shiroko, and Ise Katagami was distributed using shipping transportation. You can feel old times vibe in this area. Although the number of workshops has decreased compared to its heyday, most of the stencils distributed in Japan are still made in the Shiroko.

There are various theories about the origin of Ise Katagami, but there is also a legend that a person who saw worm-eaten leaves on a sacred cherry tree at Koyasu Kannonji in Shiroko, Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, came up with the idea for Katagami. (Photo: Koyasu Kannonji Temple)

Creating designs, making stencils, and dyeing work

Ise Katagami begins with a designer making a design. The stencil design must be connected as one piece of paper so that the pattern does not fall off when carved. In addition, when dyeing, the pattern must be connected so that the patterns are connected repeatedly to dye a large piece of cloth. Therefore, based on the design made by the designer, the stencil craftsman recreates the design for the stencil and carves the design to make the stencil. Dyeing craftsmen perform Yuzen dyeing and other dyeing techniques using the created paper patterns, but dyeing also requires well-trained techniques. Historically, it is said that the stencil patterns became finer due to the competition between the skills of the stencil craftsmen and the dyeing craftsmen.

The warmth of handwork

The characteristic of Ise Katagami is the delicate patterns hand-carved by craftsmen. There are four types of engraving techniques: striped engraving, thrust engraving, tool engraving, and drill engraving, and different carving knives are used for each technique. Most stencil craftsmen use one technique for many years to hone their engraving skills. The simpler the pattern, the more difficult it is to carve the striped pattern evenly using a ruler and carving blade as shown in the photo, which requires skill and concentration. While maintaining the same posture so that the focus of the eyes does not change, the carving continues for as long as eight hours. The greatest charm and beauty of Ise Katagami is the delicacy created by pursuing the limits of handwork and the warmth and fluctuation of lines that cannot be expressed by machines.