This month's featured artist at Gallery Saratoga, Chie Kurahashi is exhibiting part of her 'katazome' collection. Katazome , according to Kurahashi, is a traditional Japanese technique that has been in use for some 500 years. To make her katazomes on silk, other fabric or paper, Kurahashi brushes a rice-based paste called nori over the stencils. A purist, she concocts the nori herself and hand-cuts the designs and patterns of all her stencils.
All dyes come from natural plant sources or minerals.
The final result is a delicately colorful, finely detailed piece of katazome art. One of Kurahashi's greatest challenges, and also greatest pleasures, comes from crafting her stencils. Because all the curves, lines and shapes are connected, it requires a good deal of forethought. You have to think about the connections all the time. You have to think and plan a lot of things whenever you make a piece.