Arimatsu Shibori Festival

Aichi Prefecture, Arimatsu City, June, Nagoya City, Nagoya Day Trips

May 07, 2023

Shibori is a style of dyeing cloth in patterns by binding, stitching, folding, twisting, compressing, or capping the fabric before the application of dye, you can think of shibori as a kind of Japanese tie-dye, but it is a vastly more significant and more beautiful form of art than that description can encompass. Arimatsu Village is famous throughout Japan for the quality of its shibori fabrics, a reputation borne of hundreds of years of local experience in the art and business of dying fabric.

One of the best times to experience Arimasu Village, and the art form they have nurtured, is during the Arimatsu Shibori Festival, held annually in early June. Of course, you can do all the usual “matsuri things,” like eating great festival food from the vendors and seeing everyone dressed in yukata enjoying the occasion. But the main focus of this festival is the shibori. You will see a stunning variety of shibori, on display and for sale, from the simple to the amazingly complex and expensive, and local artisans produce their art right before you. In some places, you may even be able to experience the craft by creating your own shibori.

More info on Shibori (wikipedia)