Work of Yoshimi Kato. The guest curator for both exhibits is renowned Japanese quilter Miwako Kimura.
The Ainu race lived in a wide area ranging from the Sakhalin Islands to the Island of Hokkaido in Japan. The history of the Ainu people may be as old as 4,000 years. Today the Ainu people have assimilated into Japanese culture but they have prided themselves into preserving their language and their rich culture and life style.
Yoshimi Kato and I have focused on their textiles, garments and stitchery for this show at the La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum, in which most of the embroidery was made by Kato and her students. Kato encountered this unique stitchery in Hokkaido ten years ago and learned from an Ainu lady who was handed down the traditional stitching techniques as well as its historical and cultural backgrounds. The Ainu garments are no longer for practical, daily use but they are worn for festive occasions or for tourist events and are displayed in museums. In order to preserve this tradition and give a life to it, we believe the beauty of the textile and the stitching technique must further be understood by the new generation and it will stimulate them to interpret and create new things for various practical uses.
Yoshimi Kato and I are pleased to have this opportunity to exhibit the works of Ainu stitchery at the La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum. I hope you will enjoy the show and it will give some inspiration to your creations.
Miwako Kimura Curator of Japanese Quilts.
To become a sponsor of this exhibit, please click here…
.
.
.
.
.
