Ise Katagami

伊勢型紙 / Muromachi period– / Technique / Stencil Printing

Dyeing stencils cut from persimmon-tannin laminated paper: drill, tool and stripe cutting produce continuous patterns so fine that the stencils themselves startled fin-de-siècle Europe as an art of line.

Ise Katagami — Ise katagami stencil (CC0) — Ise katagami stencil (CC0) · CC0

Ise Katagami — Repeating pattern of a katagami stencil — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Repeating pattern of a katagami stencil — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Ise Katagami — Carving of a katagami stencil — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Carving of a katagami stencil — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

At a glance

Visual cues

Cut continuous patterns
The brown of tannin paper
Hairline parallel stripe cutting
Positive-negative design

Best used for

Surfaces where a repeating pattern leads, in textile, wall or packaging
Die-cut and laser work whose design lives on the figure-ground relation

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Dictionary entry

Type: No lettering, the pattern unit itself becomes what is read
Composition: Units stepped so the seam disappears, density even across the field
Material: Tannin-brown paper against cut white, lines kept thick enough to hold
Caution: Repeating a unit without studying the step makes vertical and horizontal streaks surface, and from a distance the pattern reads only as a grid.
Further study: kiribori, dogubori and shimabori / the relation to Edo komon / the influence on fin-de-siècle Vienna

Related entries

Japonisme (ジャポニスム)Shared effects: Luxury / Calm.Compare Ise Katagami and Japonisme
Adire (アディレ)Shared effects: Calm.Compare Ise Katagami and Adire

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