Maggs Bros.

A book that celebrates the immense history and craftsmanship of paper-making in Kurotani, Kyoto. This title was published in a limited edition of 200, however the present copy is an extra copy, or ban-gai (hors commerce), with a beautiful earth-toned binding and titling that is printed directly onto the wrappers. Complete with 111 original paper samples.

Around the late 1960s, there were concerns about the lack of successors to continue the tradition of paper-making in the village of Kurotani. This prompted the papermakers to research and collect documents from their archives, piecing together the history of Kuratani. The result was a series of books, beginning with the present title. The introduction was written by Hajime Nakamura (1912-1999), a well-respected philosopher and historian who taught at Tokyo University. In his detailed introduction we see photographs of the snowy village of Kurotani, the detailed step-by-step process of making fine papers, as well as portraits ageing paper-makers (concluding with an impressive 89-year old woman sorting kozo fibres by hand).

Drawing on the success and popularity of the present title, the Association published another book in 1970, ‘Kami Suki aura Kurotani’ [The villagers from Kurotani who love paper]. Once again edited by Nakamura, the book featured stencil illustrations by Chizuko Kanayama and won a prestigious book design prize.

Rare. 5 copies in OCLC.