Professor Seiko Purdue's work featured in Kyushu, Japan

Side by side artworks made of woven thread: on the left, a vertically rectangular patterned tapestry; on the right, threads with the same pattern enclose three wood pegs attached to a triangular wood block.

by College of Fine and Performing Arts Staff

December 9, 2024

Western's Professor of Art, Fibers and Fabrics, held an exhibition at Studio Kura's main gallery space in November. Located in Fukuoka, Kyushu island, Japan, Studio Kura brings in both domestic and international artists for residencies and exhibitions. During their residency, artists immerse themselves in Japan's rural community for weeks at a time, and finish with presenting the artwork they made during their stay. Seiko was excited to show a new installation piece. While she was there, she was also lucky to visit with both a Western alum and a current Western student!

Studio Kura's interest in Seiko Purdue stems partly from her curation of the exhibition Coded Threads: Textiles and Technology, and Katazome Today: Migration of A Japanese Art. Read about Seiko's exhibition on Studio Kura's website. Seiko's new installation (not pictured) is called 3D Ikat. Below is her statement about the piece:

3D Ikat

Seiko A. Purdue

I have been interested in exploring a new direction of Ikat technique based on taneito (seed threads) to create e-gasuri (pictorial design). Learning Kurume ikat was my inspiration and I have been investigating both 2D design and 3D design using the same skein of tie-dyed threads. After weaving the cloth (2D), winding it onto 3 pegs (adding the third point for 3D) is one possible approach. At Studio Kura, I started with 3D first and made 6 triangles on the wall. For 2D, I will be stretching the threads on a flat surface like a thread drawing. The resist designs are simple and geometrical but it is related to my experience in Itoshima: amazing natural environment, many Shinto shrines, and Studio Kura. I am using Indigo dyes for the main installation project but I would like to use other colors (natural dyes) to create another small piece. I hope that more people can understand Japanese traditional craft techniques such as Kurume Ikat (an intangible cultural asset) and that people value my unique approach of using these traditional crafts as a contemporary art.