8ISS Symposium-Panel on Clamp, Pole-Wrap, Tied-Resist Dyeing CHINESE BLUE & WHITE ITAJIME (JIAXIE): Folk Traditions of Carved Board Clamp Resist Dyeing in Zhejiang Province Tomoko TORIMARU Association of Fukuoka District Vocational Training, Fukuoka, Japan (Independent Scholar - History and Technology in Textiles: Japanese, Chinese, and other Traditional Asian Textiles) 1-5-10-501, Futsukaichiminami, Chikushino, Fukuoka, Japan, 818-0057 Email:
[email protected] Abstract some efforts by local government to preserve this This is a report on our field studies taken to identify and vanishing practice, it simply cannot sustain itself without observe in China the process of itajime shibori, or carved sufficient demand. board clamp resist dyeing known as Jiaxie in Chinese and pronounced 'Kyokechi' in Japanese. There is very little In 2002 and 2003, we traveled to Yishan, Cangnan, known history of this craft as generally not much attention Zhejiang Province, and visited what is now officially is paid in China to their folk traditions. designated ―Zhongnuo Minjian Gongyi Jiaxie Zuofang,‖ or roughly 'Chinese People's Art Craft Jiaxie Studio'. The 1. Introduction name suggests an effort by local government to preserve Chinese jiaxie, pronounced ―kyokechi‖ in Japanese and the area's folk craft traditions. There, we observed jiaxie known as itajime shibori, is a type of carved board clamp master, Mr. Xunlang Xue. As a sign of the times, Mr. Xue resist dyeing. Different from wax or paste resist, jiaxie performs his craft only on request as there is hardly any employs resists made of carved wooden boards. In this need nor much demand for him to sustain a regular technique, cloth is sandwiched tightly between two boards practice.