“Desire Line” Japanese Noren Hanging

This Noren is made-to-order item.

This is all hand made by craftsman, so it will take about 3-4 months for production time. We appreciate your understanding and please let us know if you have question anytime. Thank you very much.

Size: 900 × 1500 mm (35.4” × 59”)
Material: Indian cotton
Handmade in Japan using traditional indigo dyeing techniques

Background
Noren (暖簾) are Japanese fabric hanging dividers, used to gently define borders between rooms and spaces. By using vertical slits and keeping empty space below the fabric, the scene beyond is partially visible, encouraging passage.

Noren are traditionally used in homes to protect from the elements and provide shade in summer and as entrance curtains to shops and restaurants. Today, noren are also displayed as beautiful artworks.

Our noren are hand dyed by the Nagata dyeing house in Izumo, Japan. Shigenobu and Masao Nagata — fourth and fifth generation father and son craftsmen are one of only a few remaining natural indigo dye houses in all of Japan.

Process
The noren are dyed using a process called ‘tsutsugaki’. Rice is steamed for over a week to create a glutinous resist paste. Shigenobu then applies the paste by hand to define the areas into which the dye will not penetrate, creating the beautiful white contrast against the indigo.

Before the dyeing can begin, indigo is fermented for two to three weeks. The fabric is immersed in the bath for up to twelve times and dried between dips. The longer the fabric is immersed, the darker the color, and by controlling the depth to which the fabric is dipped, rich gradations of indigo can be created.

After dyeing, the fabric is washed by hand in the nearby Takase River and finally hung on a bamboo pole to dry. The total process takes around three months to complete.

Design Concept (by Hannah Waldron)
“This work was inspired whilst on a journey to find James Turrell's House of Light in the Tsumari Echigo region of Japan, which I reached by cycling up a very steep winding mountain path. But this work speaks more broadly of a journey of realisation, an emerging awareness of the interconnection of everything - a desire line towards trying to understand my place in the world as integrated with nature, rather than apart from. For me, this Desire Line series serves as a mantra for reconfiguring my own personal connection to the world.”

Read more in Hannah’s blog post or see more photos in our blog post (Japanese)

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During COVID-19, Japan post has been stopping delivery to some counties.

Here's link for unable shipping countries by Japan Post

Instead of using Japan post to these countries, we will provide to ship by Yamato International Shipping Service. ( Please write your phone number on order form )

For mask orders :

We will send maximum 3 mask orders with no tracking number service. For more than 3 mask orders, we will send by tracking service package.

Thank you for your understanding and if you have question, please let us know anytime.

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“Desire Line” Japanese Noren Hanging

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