Deep Beautiful Blue – Japanese Indigo Farmers and Dyers BUAISOU

I’ve been following the work of BUAISOU intently over the last year. Seeing their development as a company is very exciting, especially since they are young creatives who are pushing the boundaries in their chosen craft of Indigo Dyeing. This is not a field explored as much as others, a real shame considering the links to nature from start to finish of the production process.

Early last year I was in Tokushima prefecture in Japan and learnt all about indigo dyeing in this area. Unfortunately I didn’t know about BUAISOU at the time as it would of been great to stop by and see their work first hand. Luckily for us they have produced a brilliant video and have also taken some beautiful photography documenting their process from start to finish.

Tokushima is known as the production area of ‘Awa Indigo’. BUAISOU are unique in the fact that they controlling the whole process from start to finish, using a traditional technique that involves mixing wood lye, bran and shell-ash, followed by a fermentation process making it the most difficult dye to produce in the world. The bright colour is one positive as it’s very striking and wears well. Another plus is that the dye doesn’t run as much, giving the dyer far more control over the designs they are able to produce. For this reason BUAISOU have been able to work closely with artists and designers to really elevate this craft and produce designs that are contemporary and unique.

Here are a few photos from their website and a video to introduce them to you. Make sure you follow BUAISOU on Instagram and check out their online store for a variety of works that are available to purchase.

buaisou-i.com

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