Updated Jul. 12, 2019
International students currently involved in Japanese Special Seminar 74, which is offered by Center for Japanese Language and Culture, had a fun time, interacting with local residents and leaning about a traditional industry of Kyoto.
In the lecture, Mr. Kimura explained the history of Japanese clothing, the origin of the name “Nishijin-ori,” and the current situation of the Nishijin-ori industry. Compared with Japan’s “bubble economy” years, the shipment value of kimono and obi sashes as well as the number of Nishijin weavers have drastically decreased. All of the Nishijin weavers are now 70 years old or older, which suggests that Nishijin-ori is a declining industry. Mr. Kimura concluded his lecture by saying with eagerness in his voice, “The whole country needs to work on developing personnel that help keep our nation’s traditional industries alive.” After the lecture, one of the international students commented that all the students had turned pale noticing the seriousness of the issue while listening to the lecture. Regarding how to protect the Nishijin-ori industry, they provided suggestions and opinions such as: ”use SNS to effectively promote the charms and increase sales of the products,“ ”diversify the products in response to new trends,“ “create more opportunities to wear kimono, just as in Indonesia, which has established Batik Day on which everybody wears traditional clothes,“ and ”Japanese young people need to take an interest in the traditional industries of their own country and think what they should do for their future.”
After the lecture and opinion exchange, the local residents helped the students put on Nishijin-ori kimono. Fascinated by the softness and shining beauty of the fabric, they came to actually realize its great value.
June 14
The students visited the home-studio of Ms. Mineko Nagasawa who leads a handicraft group “Tezukuri Jiyu Kobo – Kimama Group,” and learned about ecological handicrafts that make effective use of materials to be discarded in order to reduce waste and create something useful for society. They also learned about traditional Japanese crafts, creating their own unique pieces, such as framed lamps and windchimes made of waste cloth of Nishijin-ori fabric and wooden frames used for its weaving, and coasters made of waste pieces of tatami mats. In the evening, they were entertained with dishes of traditional home cooking of Kyoto, called kyo no obanzai, prepared by Ms. Nagasawa and local residents. Obanzai dishes are ecological dishes made of fresh seasonal ingredients cooked carefully so that no waste is created. The students fully enjoyed the plain taste of obanzai, cooked with dashi soup stock, while learning about how to have an eco-friendly diet.June 28
The international students had a tour of the weaving studio of Mr. Nobouo Kimura, a crafts person of Nishijin-ori obi (sash), and then listened to his lecture given at Doshisha University Karasuma Campus. The lecture was offered as part of the event designed to provide the students with an opportunity to interact with the members of the women’s club in the Muromachi area in the school’s neighborhood. The framed lamps and other pieces that the students had made were placed in the classroom, which promoted active conversation between the students and local residents.In the lecture, Mr. Kimura explained the history of Japanese clothing, the origin of the name “Nishijin-ori,” and the current situation of the Nishijin-ori industry. Compared with Japan’s “bubble economy” years, the shipment value of kimono and obi sashes as well as the number of Nishijin weavers have drastically decreased. All of the Nishijin weavers are now 70 years old or older, which suggests that Nishijin-ori is a declining industry. Mr. Kimura concluded his lecture by saying with eagerness in his voice, “The whole country needs to work on developing personnel that help keep our nation’s traditional industries alive.” After the lecture, one of the international students commented that all the students had turned pale noticing the seriousness of the issue while listening to the lecture. Regarding how to protect the Nishijin-ori industry, they provided suggestions and opinions such as: ”use SNS to effectively promote the charms and increase sales of the products,“ ”diversify the products in response to new trends,“ “create more opportunities to wear kimono, just as in Indonesia, which has established Batik Day on which everybody wears traditional clothes,“ and ”Japanese young people need to take an interest in the traditional industries of their own country and think what they should do for their future.”
After the lecture and opinion exchange, the local residents helped the students put on Nishijin-ori kimono. Fascinated by the softness and shining beauty of the fabric, they came to actually realize its great value.
International students currently involved in Japanese Special Seminar 74, which is offered by Center for Japanese Language and Culture, had a fun time, interacting with local residents and leaning about a traditional industry of Kyoto.
In the lecture, Mr. Kimura explained the history of Japanese clothing, the origin of the name “Nishijin-ori,” and the current situation of the Nishijin-ori industry. Compared with Japan’s “bubble economy” years, the shipment value of kimono and obi sashes as well as the number of Nishijin weavers have drastically decreased. All of the Nishijin weavers are now 70 years old or older, which suggests that Nishijin-ori is a declining industry. Mr. Kimura concluded his lecture by saying with eagerness in his voice, “The whole country needs to work on developing personnel that help keep our nation’s traditional industries alive.” After the lecture, one of the international students commented that all the students had turned pale noticing the seriousness of the issue while listening to the lecture. Regarding how to protect the Nishijin-ori industry, they provided suggestions and opinions such as: ”use SNS to effectively promote the charms and increase sales of the products,“ ”diversify the products in response to new trends,“ “create more opportunities to wear kimono, just as in Indonesia, which has established Batik Day on which everybody wears traditional clothes,“ and ”Japanese young people need to take an interest in the traditional industries of their own country and think what they should do for their future.”
After the lecture and opinion exchange, the local residents helped the students put on Nishijin-ori kimono. Fascinated by the softness and shining beauty of the fabric, they came to actually realize its great value.
June 14
The students visited the home-studio of Ms. Mineko Nagasawa who leads a handicraft group “Tezukuri Jiyu Kobo – Kimama Group,” and learned about ecological handicrafts that make effective use of materials to be discarded in order to reduce waste and create something useful for society. They also learned about traditional Japanese crafts, creating their own unique pieces, such as framed lamps and windchimes made of waste cloth of Nishijin-ori fabric and wooden frames used for its weaving, and coasters made of waste pieces of tatami mats. In the evening, they were entertained with dishes of traditional home cooking of Kyoto, called kyo no obanzai, prepared by Ms. Nagasawa and local residents. Obanzai dishes are ecological dishes made of fresh seasonal ingredients cooked carefully so that no waste is created. The students fully enjoyed the plain taste of obanzai, cooked with dashi soup stock, while learning about how to have an eco-friendly diet.June 28
The international students had a tour of the weaving studio of Mr. Nobouo Kimura, a crafts person of Nishijin-ori obi (sash), and then listened to his lecture given at Doshisha University Karasuma Campus. The lecture was offered as part of the event designed to provide the students with an opportunity to interact with the members of the women’s club in the Muromachi area in the school’s neighborhood. The framed lamps and other pieces that the students had made were placed in the classroom, which promoted active conversation between the students and local residents.In the lecture, Mr. Kimura explained the history of Japanese clothing, the origin of the name “Nishijin-ori,” and the current situation of the Nishijin-ori industry. Compared with Japan’s “bubble economy” years, the shipment value of kimono and obi sashes as well as the number of Nishijin weavers have drastically decreased. All of the Nishijin weavers are now 70 years old or older, which suggests that Nishijin-ori is a declining industry. Mr. Kimura concluded his lecture by saying with eagerness in his voice, “The whole country needs to work on developing personnel that help keep our nation’s traditional industries alive.” After the lecture, one of the international students commented that all the students had turned pale noticing the seriousness of the issue while listening to the lecture. Regarding how to protect the Nishijin-ori industry, they provided suggestions and opinions such as: ”use SNS to effectively promote the charms and increase sales of the products,“ ”diversify the products in response to new trends,“ “create more opportunities to wear kimono, just as in Indonesia, which has established Batik Day on which everybody wears traditional clothes,“ and ”Japanese young people need to take an interest in the traditional industries of their own country and think what they should do for their future.”
After the lecture and opinion exchange, the local residents helped the students put on Nishijin-ori kimono. Fascinated by the softness and shining beauty of the fabric, they came to actually realize its great value.