Shibori

絞り染め / 8th century– / Technique / Textile Traditions

A technique in which cloth is stitched, bound or clamped between boards before dyeing, so that only the parts under pressure stay white. The result is left to the strength of the craftsman's hands and the movement of the cloth, and no two pieces come out alike even from the same pattern.

Shibori — Utagawa Hiroshige, Famous Views of the Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō, no. 41 Narumi, shop of the local Arimatsu shibori, 1855 — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Utagawa Hiroshige, Famous Views of the Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō, no. 41 Narumi, shop of the local Arimatsu shibori, 1855 — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Shibori — Kosode fragment with chrysanthemum and lozenge pattern, kanoko shibori, late 17th century, Los Angeles County Museum of Art — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Kosode fragment with chrysanthemum and lozenge pattern, kanoko shibori, late 17th century, Los Angeles County Museum of Art — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Shibori — Kosode fragment with tortoiseshell, wave and cherry blossom pattern, kanoko shibori, early 17th century, Los Angeles County Museum of Art — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Kosode fragment with tortoiseshell, wave and cherry blossom pattern, kanoko shibori, early 17th century, Los Angeles County Museum of Art — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

At a glance

Visual cues

The bled white left by binding
Regular grain from stitch resist
Geometric ground patterns from board clamping
A texture that keeps the relief of the cloth

Best used for

Making a surface that differs piece by piece from the same pattern
Using a texture that records the pressure of the hand on purpose

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Dictionary entry

Type: Choose heavier letterforms that survive the unevenness of handwork.
Composition: Mix intended irregularity into a regular repeat.
Material: Resist the dye by binding and pressure, and allow the dye to bleed.
Caution: Reproducing the pattern in print makes it another thing entirely. The bleed and the unevenness are the record of the technique.
Further study: The Arimatsu and Narumi centers and their families of technique / The differences among itajime, nuishime and bōshi shibori / Its combination with indigo dyeing

Related entries

Batik (バティック（ジャワ更紗）)Same Textile Traditions lineage.Compare Shibori and Batik
Adire (アディレ)Same Textile Traditions lineage.Compare Shibori and Adire

Often confused with

Ikat (絣)compare

Cite this entry

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