No one knows just how or when ancient peoples first discovered that wax has the power to prevent dye from penetrating cloth. But around the world and for more than a thousand years, textiles patterned with wax resist have been highly prized, chosen to decorate churches or designate the highest rank in a community. Today wax resist is still honored, as an art form in its own right. This development is thanks largely to the outstanding work being done by Japan's wax resist, or rozome, artists.
Wax resist might be called Japan's "lost art." Rozome was known early in Japanese history but never taken into the mainstream of fabric dyeing. The innovative artists of Kyoto working with this form today have reclaimed a nearly forgotten legacy. Their daring interpretations are the focus of The World of Rozome.
Rozome now seems to attract artists of a particularly independent turn of mind. Artisans in this field are able to work alone in their studios, performing each step from design through finished product without assistance. Rozome artists have developed expert techniques in shading, control and luminosity that set this form apart from the batik of other countries.
In-depth interviews with seventeen contemporary artists form the heart of this volume. The established masters are joined by younger, forward-looking artists. The styles are diverse, and the methods and materials unconventional, incorporating sprayed and rolled wax as well as synthetic wax and photograph serigraphy.
The author opens with a colorful historical section on the earliest resist finds of the Near East, Central Asia and Tang China--focusing on those presumed to use liquid wax--and follows this with a look at the origins of wax resist in Japan in the ancient capital of Nara.
A carefully illustrated process section outlines everything textile artists might need to know: materials used, advanced methods of applying wax and dye, wax formulas, pigment application, setting of dyes and removal of wax from cloth.
Vividly illustrated with numerous full-color plates and black-and-white figures, this handsome book is the first to appear in English on Japanese wax resist. The World of Rozome throws open a door on a world where innovative artists are creating a new tradition from the fragments of an ancient art.
"... an admirable book, combining the scholarly with the artistic with great success...." -- Textile Fibre Forum
"... an invaluable account of the artists and their creations." -- Kyoto Journal
"A fascinating resource book and portrait of today's artists working in Japan." -- Fiberarts Magazine
"A product of consummate research." -- Surface Design Journal
"Benjamin's love of research -- and rozome itself -- shines forth from every page." -- Leesa Hubbell, The Japan Times
"Brimming with meticulous, well-annotated detail." -- Daruma: Japanese Art & Antiques Magazine
"Colourful and beautiful illustrations. . . . Will inspire the casual peruser as well as the serious student." -- Journal for Weavers, Spinners and Dyers
"Unlike hobby dyers' books, the manufacturing process is explained professionally. This comes close to handing down a craft tradition." -- Textile Forum Magazine
