Paperblanks Katagami Florals Journal Collection

Japanese Stencil Art

“Katagami” is the formal name for the art of Japanese stencil design. The ancient art dates back over thousand years, but these two designs, Kuro and Sakura reproduced come from the late 19th or 20th century. 

Katazome begins with grinding inner lining of mulberry bark into a smooth paste, then adding persimmon juice to laminate and waterproof the finished stencil paper. The paste is then rolled into thin sheets and dried in preparation for carving and dyeing.  A design would be placed on top of the sheets and its pattern cut out by hand.