A tapestry with images of wreaths of flowers and leaves has just been delivered to Social Welfare Corporation Ichihara Dormitory "Kayū Jurakudai," a welfare facility in Kyoto City. The title is “home.” The concept is “'Tadaima (I'm home).' 'Okaeri (Welcome back).' A tapestry that welcomes people warmly, like a home.” This was a group project by the first year students in 2020, and was woven by two students.
For the users, coming to the daycare is a source of energy. To create a tapestry for a place like this, the two students said, “To honor our seniors of life, as motifs we chose flowers that represent gratitude, and expressed wishes for good health, and the joy of gathering in a “circle.”
In this project, students decide on a theme after learning about the facility’s philosophy, design according to the space the tapestry will be in, draw a genga (original drawing), create a cartoon through taking a class by an expert from Kawashima Selkon Textiles Co., Ltd., and weave, receiving advice from the instructors at the school. For the students, it is a culmination of a year of study, and an opportunity to connect to society through creating.
The 157cm wide, 100cm tall tapestry delivered that day was displayed at the entrance used by facility users. It is a space where around 100 people come and go in a day. The average age of the users is 86, and the oldest is 105 years old. Due to the nature of the locality, there are some people who have worked as Nishijin-ori craftspeople. Upon seeing the tapestry, Kiyomi Mori, the director of the facility, instantly smiled and said, "The space has become brighter and more gorgeous.” She said, “The users here all love flowers, regardless of gender. I think conversations will start from seeing the tapestry. I will be happy if this becomes a place like that."
You can read more about the first year students’ group project here:
About the School: Tsuzure-Ori Series 3 | The Group Tapestry Project, The Culmination of a Year of Study
