1300 years of Tango Silk

town and culture 8.12.2020

Let’s spend some time with silk. Watch the way it moves and flows, the way it feels when touched. Just doing this provides immense comfort and a feeling of calm. It is said that silk is the material that most closely resembles our skin. And Tango silk in particular is quite diverse, expressed in a variety of ways with rich textures that have been refined across the 1300 years. This region has been a production hub of silk fabrics and the silk industry here is also looking towards the future. It continues to evolve, creating textiles of the highest quality that have been the centerpiece of modern fashion, for example in Paris collections.

The versatility of Tango Silk

Silk in Kyoto by the Sea has a history stretching back to 711. Since the Tango region (northern part of Kyoto Prefecture) started silk production over 1300 years ago, the area has become the silk fabric production center of Japan. During this period, weavers here have worked to constantly update and refine their craft both in terms of technology and the silk fabric itself. There is a desire to express silk’s suppleness and diverse textures. The texture of silk in this area has no parallel anywhere in the world and the variety of textures range from hard and inflexible all the way to so soft that it appears to melt in the hand. Stretch, elasticity, drape, wrinkle recovery, etc. are all aspects of the craft that artisans here have developed and are constantly improving upon.

There are a variety of woven patterns that combine the technique of yarn twisting with weaving using a jacquard loom. These woven fabrics often give the impression that the intricate patterns are created by dyeing or printing with different colors. However, Tango craftsmen are so skilled that they can create any pattern even if they are only using the same color thread, and it is said that this extends to 10,000 different patterns. The delicate nature of these woven patterns is such that a single color can be used to express light and shadow (this can even be accomplished with all white) and create a three-dimensional effect and texture that cannot be fully expressed with printed fabric.

Silk thread is a natural fiber. It really is a living thing, so even if you try to recreate the same work, the result will be different. Woven fabrics are completed through a simultaneously simple yet complicated process of combining various threads, twisting, and weaving. The Tango crafts-people work with these silk-thread creatures every day to create the desired feel and appearance. Skilled artisans are vital to creating the finished product to the extent that there is even a saying that goes, “even the latest technology can’t weave.”

It takes skilled eyes to hone such high-quality standards

Tango is Japan's largest silk fabric production area, and its share is about 70%* of the whole country. The reason behind this is the way Tango weavers live. It is the tenacity to "make it no matter what," even if the request is difficult. This might also say something about the temperament of people living in Tango. It takes a great deal of energy to meet the demands of the industry. In particular, kimono fabric and the world of kimono has a very strict quality control. The standard is such that even a tiny imperfection (small pieces of thread creating an inconsistency or bump) is classified as a “significant deficiency” and the unit price decreases or the product doesn’t go to market. For this reason, Tango has established a system whereby all fabrics are visually inspected. Even under these strict quality standards, weavers have risen to meet to all kinds of new requests, and as a result of repeated ingenuity, they have evolved their techniques to create fabrics with a texture that is wholly unique in the world.

*Calculated based on the number of Japanese dyed fabrics (dress material) produced in Japan (outer fabric), based on data from the Japan Silk Human Textile Industry Association

Tango weavers are the Elites opening up the possibilities of silk to the world

The possibilities of silk textiles keeps evolving, and the weavers here are front and center. Their fabrics have been adopted for pieces exhibited in Paris Collection, Hollywood movies, and more. Since around 2005, the influence of these “silk elites” has helped increase the expansion of these fabrics overseas. Though they have the advantage of 1300 years of weaving history, they continue to develop products across all aspects of lifestyle, challenging themselves to innovate with fabric, not limited to Japanese clothing. Their creative endeavors are the culmination of each weaver's technique and sense. And behind that is the knowledge of the heritage arts of "Tango chirimen" silk fabric.

Tango chirimen kimono fabric: the pinnacle of expression

At the heart Tango silk’s ever-evolving industry, the heritage skills of "Tango chirimen," with a history of more than 300 years, are still very much alive. Tango chirimen is a woven fabric that is created by weaving the untwisted warp thread with heavily twisted weft thread. After the scouring process, irregularities called "shibo" are created on the surface of the fabric. Tango’s dyed silk created this way is known as Tango chirimen. The brand mark is only imprinted upon products that have undergone rigorous inspections and have been assessed as the highest quality. Tango chirimen, which has a nationwide market share of 70%, has supported Japanese kimono culture since the Edo period.

Weaving a fabric using both thread and twisted thread is a very difficult technique. This is because it requires an enhanced sense that can only be obtained through experience, such as adjusting the tension of the warp threads or the number of rotations needed to weave the weft threads. The crafts-people of Tango chirimen have such control over the twisted thread it’s like breathing for them. This is likely thanks to a lifetime of developing these specific skills. The fruition of their years of expertise is a fabric that has a three-dimensional depth. The unique "shibo" created by using the technique of shrinking the thread gives the fabric, which is originally flat, a three-dimensional effect. There are an innumerable amount of thread types for a single thread depending on how the threads are intertwined, such as the number of twists or how the threads are combined together. Crafts-people have created various, expressive patterns on the surface of the fabric by manipulating the different ways its possible weave these threads.

Tango chirimen celebrates its 300-year anniversary in 2020

Tango has been a source of silk fabrics for more than 1300 years. The people of Tango’s inland area relied on agriculture and textiles for their livelihoods, but in the Edo period when the Nishijin district in Kyoto developed a silk fabric called omeshi chirimen, Tango area’s Tango Seigo didn’t sell and was labeled “country silk”, and on top of that the area was suffering from poor harvests. The people were faced with a crisis. At that time chirimen was well-known as beautifully woven fabric with an intricate shibo texture, but the weaving required high level techniques that were confidential. In order to help the people in the area, Kinuya Saheiji of Mineyama (town of Mineyama, Kyotango City) volunteered at a machine shop in Nishijin, Kyoto in 1720, where he learned secret techniques such as thread reeling, preparing thread ends, and the art of “shibo.” After struggling with the techniques he brought back the skills he learned and succeeded in making a crepe weave for the first time in Tango.

At about the same time (1722), and in order to introduce chirimen technology to the area, Kaya’s (town of Yosano, Ushirono district) Momenya Rokuemon, Kaya’s Tegomeya Koemon, and Migochi’s (town of Yosano, Migochi district) Yamamotoya Sahee, also brought the knowledge of chirimen back to the area. These four people who had learned the techniques of chirimen generously taught the methods to the local people. Chirimen quickly spread throughout the area, and the residents took advantage of the new textile technology to overcome their hardships. And from those beginnings Tango chirimen has become a world standard with a 300-year history.

A perfect climate and natural environment for silk production

The Tango region provided the conditions for the dramatic growth of the Tango chirimen industry. It is thanks to the natural environment and climate that Tango has become a mecca of the highest quality silk.

The first-class manufacturing of silk fabrics can be realized only by twisting, weaving, and refining. Twisting: twisting a combination of thread. Weaving: weaving a combination of warp and wefts. Refining: removing impurities of silk by scouring. Only when these three elements are present can an area be called a "production center." And central to all this is water, which is indispensable for silk fabric. Characteristic of Tango is a topography that includes mountains, spring, rivers, and the Japanese Sea, all in a compact area. And within this are the villages where people live as if weaving themselves into the natural environment. The region is blessed with abundant and high-quality water that has supported the production of silk fabric (which requires a large amount of water). The Tango region also has its own weather phenomenon called "uranishi", which provides humidity even in winter and brings plentiful rain and snow. This is excellent for silk production because silk thread is weak in dry conditions and breaks easily. The humidity of Tango protects the threads and even strengthens them. This is especially important for Tango chirimen, which necessitates twisting thread over and over. Water and humidity were indispensable for creating the unique texture that results from this technique. Water, climate, and the accumulated knowledge of the people: as a result of all these facets occurring in one place, Tango has grown into a region that can handle everything from twisting, to weaving, and refining."

The appearance and feel of silk is decided by water

In Europe, where silk fabrics are prosperous, there are many fabrics with a crisp texture. On the other hand, many Tango silk fabrics are soft and flowy. The reason for this difference, even with the same silk, is the difference in "water" used in the refining process to remove impurities from silk. There is a component called "sericin" on the surface of raw silk, and this sericin has a certain hardness. The process of removing the sericin coating on the raw silk extracted from the cocoon and leaving only the fibroin, which is the fiber, is called “scouring”. Water is the most important factor in this scouring. It takes a large amount of water. If the water quality is hard water, the fabric remains stiff. And if soft water is used, the fabric will also have a soft texture. Since the water in Tango is soft, it’s possible to obtain a soft and malleable silk fabric. In that sense, water has expanded the possibilities of silk fabrics. The twisting technology and scouring technology that determines the texture of silk fabrics has evolved. Just one piece of silk fabric is completed after many processes all requiring a lot of water. And the unique texture of silk created here is unique to this land. The luster of the Tango silk fabric is the brilliance of Japan itself, and it has supported kimono culture for a long time.

endless possibilities of the skin-like softness and vitality of silk

Tango has made various efforts to expand the possibilities of "silk" based on the technology of silk fabrics.

"Silk" is the closest natural fiber on earth to human skin. Considering that of the 20 kinds of amino acids that human skin has, 18 of them match silk, its clear to see that it is a material with a high affinity for humans.

For this reason, silk is being re-examined for new potential, not only for its application in clothing, interior design, and bedding, but also in the fields of cosmetics and medicine. In Tango, artisans have expanded the range of use as well by developing “Kinumoyofu” a skin care/cosmetic that uses the moisturizing component of silk sericin, and by working on the manufacturing of silk masks that are kind on the skin.

In the world today, there are various environmental and global health problems. And natural materials are increasingly becoming more important. Innovating with fabrics like silk that harmonize well with our bodies will be an important step for the next generation. There is really nothing on earth that matches the completely natural feel of real Tango silk.

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