Japan - Kurotani Washi, Ayabe, Kyoto Prefecture
The art of washi: traditional Japanese paper making
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Stumbling blearily from the warm cocoon of the car, I take a deep breath and drink in the biting chill that surrounds Kurotani Washi, a paper mill tucked into the mountain valleys of Kyoto’s northern peninsula. It is one of the few places left in Japan where production methods closely resemble the ways washi was handcrafted during the Meiji era (1868–1912), and I’ve come for a glimpse into the complex inner world of traditional paper making.
Traditionally, after harvesting, kozo branches are manually cut, bundled, and snugly packed into a huge cauldron for boiling in order to remove the fibrous bark.
Scenes from a misty early morning mulberry harvest
Mechanised wooden mallets used to grind mulberry in stone mills for paper making
'I think this could apply to everything in the world, but when you make paper as an artisan, I commit to producing washi that will bring enjoyment to the end user', a local craftswoman explains as I watch the team take to the surrounding kozo (mulberry) fields, scythes ready in hand for harvest.
Local craftswoman scrapes away the fibrous mulberry bark
An excerpt of a print feature article with STORIED. All photography and copy by Grace Laolao.