Japan Residency at Kanazawa College of Art

In April 2023, I was selected to take part in the Edinburgh College of Art exchange program with Japan. I spent four months living in Kanazawa and studying Textile Design at Kanazawa College of Art.

Kanazawa is the capital city of Japan’s Ishikawa Prefecture. It is referred to as the city of “Kogei”, which is the Japanese term for traditional crafts. This reputation stems from the fact that Kanazawa is a key centre for Japanese traditional crafts. 

I was taught traditional dyeing and textile techniques from Japanese masters in these areas. My intense study period covered weaving, katezome print, natural dye techniques, embroidery, block printing and shibori. 

It was a totally immersive experience. I had daily lessons in technique, then was able to use elements of these in my own more expressive work. My current work is my direct response to the wonderful experience I had in Kanazawa.

As well as the traditional textile exposure, my response to the contemporary Japanese urban landscape has had a big impact on the shapes, forms and patterns I have explored in my final year project.