Hitotsuya has a staff member from Nepal. We call him Bija. He is a fine young man whose straightforward character and beautiful eyes make a strong impression. At Hitotsuya, he handles English translation for our overseas events and our accounting.
Recently, he has also become very interested in natural dyeing and textile work. When I asked why, he said, “The tools, equipment, and techniques used here look as though they could also be put into practice in Nepal. I hope they might lead to new kinds of work there.” I have heard, for example, that even if the latest machinery and equipment are sent to developing countries, unstable power supplies can sometimes make them unusable.
What is more, Nepal is known for producing and exporting pashmina products, so perhaps this is not such a “distant dream” after all.
Creating Work in Nepal and the Natural Dyeing Hitotsuya Aims For
Let me change the subject slightly. As I wrote in an earlier post, “Like the Meiji Industrial Revolution”, Hitotsuya is serious about “making natural dyeing into work!” We do not mean working as traditional craft or handicraft artists. What we aim for is “natural dyeing as an industry.” To make that possible, however, a certain level of productivity and quality is necessary.
At the same time, we also believe “the character and image of natural dyeing matter.” That includes the colors characteristic of natural dyes and the atmosphere created by handwork. Balancing those qualities with productivity and quality is an extremely difficult challenge. A hint toward solving it came from a Meiji-era machine I saw in a museum.
The photo below shows a spinning machine invented by a Japanese maker during the Meiji era. It can spin yarn that is very close to handspun yarn. Because it operates with a rattling gara-gara sound, it came to be called “Garabo”. This restored machine runs on electricity, but waterwheels and other power sources were also used at the time.
※ You can see it running at Hitotsuya’s physical shop and on YouTube.
To return from that digression, Bija’s words made me wonder whether machines like these could be useful when thinking about creating local industries in Nepal, especially in rural areas.
Hitotsuya originally began simply from the wish, “We want to make things that are not about mass production and mass consumption, but are environmentally friendly and human in character!” Amid all the inspiration we have received, a new idea is beginning to take root—.
It is a return to the roots of Japanese making. And the realization that there are people who need that kind of making.
For Education Funding in Nepal
To move toward that goal, we have placed a donation box at Hitotsuya’s physical shop for “education funding in Nepal”. If young people in developing countries are to avoid having to leave home to work abroad, they need “work in their own country.” We are raising funds not to train good workers and send them to developed countries such as Japan, but to help create an environment in which people can remain in their home country and continue working together into the future.
Please support this effort if you can. We would be sincerely grateful for your help.
As for the funds collected, we plan to have Bija take them with him when he returns to Nepal and use them to purchase stationery and other supplies for the elementary school in the village where he grew up. That is our first goal.
※ The funds are not intended for Hitotsuya.