- 布に寄り添い生かす。-
NORAのものづくりの根本にあるのは、「布に寄り添い⽣かす。
そして、私が向き合っているのは、⽇
⼀枚⼀枚の古布には、それぞれ異なる表情があり、同じ素材、
によって、その状態は異なります。
⼀着分しか残っていない布がほとんどで、⼀度裁断すれば、
だからこそ、⽬の前にある布を⾒ながら、どのように作品を仕⽴
布の状態や表情によって、つくり⽅も変わる。
⼀着つくるたびに、その布から得られる経験が積み重なり、
ある⽇、初めて⽇本の古布を⼿に取り、その布が持つ⼒
その出会いが、
やがて、その関⼼は布そのものだけでなく、
「この布はどこから来たのか」
「どのような場所に残されていたのか」
そうしたことを知りたくて、⾃ら古い家や蔵へ⾜を運び、
そこで出会った⼈たちから、
その中で感じるのは、現代とは異なる「ものを⾒る感覚」です。
技術的な優劣や歴史的な価値といった理屈ではなく、「これ、
情報や選択肢が今ほど多くなかった時代には、
もちろん、当時の⼈たちが何を考え、
それでも、限られた材料や環境の中で、
そうした、かつての⼈たちのものづくりの感覚に、
しかし、NORAが⽬指しているのは、
古い服の構造やつくり⽅を知り、布が残されていた場所を訪ね、
そうした経験を重ねながらも、最終的につくるのは、現在を⽣
これまで⾒て感じてきたもの、
し、⽬の前の布と向き合えるのか。
⼀着つくれば、また新しい疑問が⽣まれる。
違う布を使えば、それまでとは違う発⾒がある。
当時作られた服を⾒返せば、
そうした経験を重ねながら、ものを⾒る感覚や、布との向き合い⽅
「布に寄り添い⽣かす。」
この根本にある考え⽅を⼤切にしながら、その時々で⾒
NORAはこれからも、その時の⾃
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At the heart of NORA’s approach to making things is a simple idea: to work with fabric, respect its character, and bring out its potential.
The materials I work with are old textiles made in Japan.
Each piece of fabric has its own character. Even when made from the same materials and in the same period, each piece differs depending on how it has been used and the conditions in which it has been preserved.
Most of the fabrics I work with remain in quantities sufficient for just one garment. Once cut, they cannot be brought back to their original state, nor can the same garment be made again under the same conditions.
That is why I begin by looking at the fabric itself and considering what kind of garment it might become.
The way I work changes with the condition and character of each piece. Every garment brings new experiences, along with questions and discoveries I had not encountered before.
When I first encountered old Japanese textiles, I was deeply moved by the qualities of the fabric itself. That encounter marked the beginning of NORA.
Over time, my interest expanded beyond the fabric itself to the places where it had been preserved and the ways people made things in the past.
Where did this fabric come from?
What kind of place had it been kept in?
Wanting to find out, I began visiting old houses and storehouses, seeing for myself the places where these fabrics had remained. I also have opportunities to hear stories about traditional ways of life and textile-making from the people I meet along the way.
Through these encounters, I have come to sense a different way of looking at things, one that differs from how we see things today.
Rather than judging something by its technical qualities or historical value, it is about simply recognizing the beauty of what is right in front of you and saying, “This is beautiful, isn’t it?”
I have come to wonder whether making things was once a simpler process, in a time when there was less information and fewer choices than there are today.
Of course, I cannot know exactly what people in those times were thinking or what sensibilities guided the way they made things.
Still, they made things using whatever materials were available to them, within the limits of their circumstances. I am curious to get closer, even in a small way, to that way of making things.
However, NORA does not aim to reproduce garments or methods of making from the past.
I study the construction and techniques of old garments, visit the places where these fabrics have remained, and imagine the lives of the people who once used them. Through these experiences, what I ultimately create are garments for the present.
With everything I have seen and experienced, and all that I have learned along the way, I continue to ask myself how much I can strip away and how closely I can engage with the fabric in front of me. I do not believe there is a definitive answer.
With every garment, new questions arise.
A different fabric brings new discoveries.
Looking at garments made in the past reveals things I had not noticed before.
Through these experiences, the way I see things and my relationship with fabric continue to evolve.
“Working with fabric, respecting its character, and bringing out its potential.”
Holding on to this fundamental idea, I continue to embrace what each moment reveals and question my own approach along the way.
NORA will continue to create in a way that reflects who I am and what I can make at each moment in time.