Ishibashi Foundation Special Evening Lecture The Art of Washi: Tradition, Innovation, and Contemporary Challenges in Japanese Papermaking

This lecture presents an in-depth exploration of washi, Japan’s traditional handmade paper, renowned for its durability, aesthetic versatility, and strong cultural significance. By examining the papermaking techniques that have evolved over centuries and remain practised today, it offers insights into the factors that have allowed these traditions to persist despite social and economic transformations. Drawing on recent fieldwork conducted in notable centres of washi production—Echizen in Fukui, Mino in Gifu, and Ino-machi in Kochi—this presentation highlights the nuanced regional differences that influence both the craft and its associated communities.