Shop Talk…Amy Katoh’s Iconic Blue & White

So it occurred to me in writing my last post on LuRu Home that Claire and Liza are possibly at the beginning of a similar journey to that started some time ago by Amy Katoh, author, shop owner and flame keeper of all Japanese things handcrafted, indigo and folk art. When Amy Katoh moved to Japan in the 1960s, the local mood was to jettison everything Japanese and traditional in favor of things western and modern. This wasn’t a new trend – it had been happening since the Meiji Restoration – where seemingly overnight Japan went from an agrarian culture to an industrial one. But pockets of the old ways remained for those who sought them out and at the forefront of this group was Amy and her perfectly named shop Blue & White.

It seems ironic that it takes an outsider to shine the light into the corners of a culture, pulling out and saving the pieces that are about to be discarded, both figuratively and literally. Amy went to markets and bought up old indigo work clothes, almost warm from their former owners backs, tools considered defunct and pottery no longer wanted. She started out by saving things and went on to re-invent and help create new things from the old. She has been instrumental in bringing outside interest to the folk arts of Japan and it is that very outside interest that has helped the Japanese see the magic of their traditional arts culture themselves.

It is not just her knowledge that makes her so compelling, but also her very personality. She is never still, never bored and always interested in seeing and learning more. Whenever I am with her she is engaged and excited about something – a new exhibition or experience – and her vibrancy is infectious. Many a new expat wanders into her shop only to be seduced by the charm of the goods and their proprietor. In fact, I’ve head from numerous people that they chose their neighborhood and apartment because it was near Blue & White.

Lately Amy has been very involved in working with handicrafts fashioned by the handicapped, a group that can often be overlooked. Her committment to numerous groups is strong and the wares in the store reflect that. In May, after Golden Week an exhibition featuring handcraft by the handicapped from Tohoku will be on display. The regions hit by the tsunami were known for their traditional arts and much was destroyed. It has been hard to get those small industries up and running and particularly so for handicapped artists. Money raised from the sale of the genki tenugui (written about here) will also be put towards this cause.

The Blue & White shop is an atmospheric hodge-podge and has bits of everything, from antiques and modern ceramics…

…to charming little chopstick rests. Do I spy Otafuku?

It’s the kind of place where at any moment, an itinerant indigo peddler may show up and stark unpacking his wares. I’ve been lucky enough to be there on one of those days. He should be coming back quite soon, perhaps in the next week or two.

Kasuri slippers anyone? Not to jump the gun, but you’ll be hearing a lot about kasuri from me in the coming days.

While there is no formal lesson schedule posted, Kazuko Yoshiura does teach sashiko there…

as does Akiko Ike, who teaches the rough and primitive form called chiku chiku, which is the sound a sewing needle makes when going thru cloth. I can’t imagine actually using these charming dust cloths for their said purpose.

And Amy has almost single-handedly kept traditionally dyed yukata fabric from Tokyo Honzome (a consortium of dyers) in production. No one can afford to buy the handmade rolls anymore for making yukata, but she sells it by the meter, perfect for projects like quilting. You all know how often we have turned to her for the fabric in the ASIJ quilt borders. These days the dyers are surviving by making tenugui – the Japanese equivalent of a dish cloth – with the traditional techniques and stencils and Blue & White has a large selection of those too.

One of the most beloved things sold at Blue & White are the small quilts and hangings by Reiko Inaba. She uses vintage mosquito netting, kasuri and other fabrics to turn out her charming kimono and fish quilts, something she started doing as cancer therapy.

For those of you who can’t just pop in and visit, Amy’s books have been reprinted a million times and still feel as fresh as ever. She is currently working on a fifth – I’m not sure that I can give away any details on it!

For me personally, Amy has been an inspiration, a teacher and a wonderful example of how to live a life full of constant discovery. She sees the wow! in everything.

Put Blue & White on your bucket list….

Blue & White
2-9-2 Azabu Juban.
Telephone: 03-3451-0537

http://blueandwhitetokyo.com/

On a related note, the giveaway for an indigo and white nankeen pillow from LuRu Home has closed. I’ll have a winner for you by the end of the week.

Mar 19, 2013 By tokyojinja in Books, Movies & TV, Color, Shop Talk 16 Comments Tags: Amy Katoh, Blue & White, folk art, handicrafts, indigo, sashiko

Shades of (Pink) and Grey…A Little American-French-Japanese Overlap

Indigo abounds here in Tokyo, and while I love it, not everything can be blue. Finding porcelain, like the pieces in yesterday’s post, or textiles, like the one in this post, in other colors tends to be more unusual. So lucky me found this amazing pieced and sashiko-stitched blanket recently, in the most unusual colors of pink and grey. The blanket is a four block grid, over stitched in white thread. I brought it home and changed out our duvet for summer. Ironically, for all that it is Japanese, it looks so much like an American quilt, even an Amish one. And perhaps even funnier, I have it on a very French bed.

It’s perfect simplicity really is reminiscent of late 19th and early 20th century Amish quilts, like this one from an old Christie’s auction.

Kinda apropos with this pillow, isn’t it? Not just color, but the mix of American quilt block and Japanese obi, all on a French settee.

And the room already had another mash-up, with a late Federal American birds-eye maple and cherry dresser, paired with sconces and a pastel portrait from the Paris flea market.

Nothing like a little multiculturalism, is there?

Jun 11, 2012 By tokyojinja in Interior Design, Textiles 4 Comments Tags: Amish quilts, bedroom, bedrooms, quilts, sashiko

Artist Spotlight…Kazuko Yoshiura and Sashiko Fever

Sashiko is a traditional form of needlework that has been practised in Japan for centuries. Born out of necessity, it was a way to make layers out of thin garments in cold climates. Sashiko was also method of patching textiles to extend their life in times of hardship. Like other needlecrafts (such as quilting or knitting Aran sweaters), the sashiko embroidery that developed from functional patching became an art form in itself.

As textiles became cheaper and more readily available, sashiko embroidery began to be used for decoration as well as practicality. Traditional Japanese patterns and motifs were incorporated into the sashiko syllabus of stitches and more intricate designs developed. Today, although sashiko is used primarily as a decorative accent, its functional purpose remains: to reinforce, strengthen and make warmer, and in the process to create a useful cloth where beauty visits as an unintended consequence.

Sashiko artist Kazuko Yoshiura’s exhibition is being presented at Amy Katoh’s legendary shop Blue & White in Azabu Juban through October 15, 2010. The wall hanging above, in a patchwork “cracked-ice” pattern, is an incredible sampler of different sashiko patterns. The word sashiko itself means “little stabs” and key to its methodology is the tiny regular stitches. While results can look elaborate, the basic technique consists of simple running stitches sewn in repeating tate-jima (vertical lines) or yoko-jima (horizontal lines) and combinations of the two .

Ironically, Yoshiura first learned sashiko at Blue & White 30 years ago! Since then she has carried her art far and wide, publishing books and being featured in magazines, including Japanese Vogue. She lives on the Izu Peninsula and teaches sashiko at Blue & White on the 2^nd Thursday of each month. One of her quilts is even included in the collection of Paul McCartney!

Items on display include table runners and decorative bags. Traditional sashiko is white thread against an indigo dyed fabric, but red thread can be used as well, as seen on this small bag.

This embroidered vest hangs in front of a giant furoshiki (a traditional Japanese wrapping cloth) in classic karakusa pattern. It would be perfect to use as a small tablebloth.