Solo Exhibit & Giveaway: Kumo Temari

Update: Our winner is commenter #69: Aik! Thank you to Kumo Temari for acquainting us with this remarkable art form.

Today I am thrilled to introduce you to the centuries-old Japanese folk art of temari! Known for their intriguing designs and rich color combinations, temari are enjoying a modern day resurgence through artists such as Kumo Temari.

Temari began as a child’s toy; simply a leather ball. Over time, they evolved into thread wrapped spheres. When women began embroidering them with silk thread, they took on new life as an art form. The traditional designs are elaborate and can take many years to master. As Kumo Temari has long been a fan of intricate art forms (you may remember her here on Etsy Stalker both as Crescent Maille and Cloudery), it’s no surprise that temari captured her fancy.

What sets these temari apart from the crowd is that Kumo Temari begins each one with a meaningful quote or poem. The words are copied by hand and placed in a “bell box” which is embedded into the center of the sphere. The bell box also contains brass rings which add a quiet rattle to the temari. The quote or verse gives the temari a meditative quality that inspires its creation and becomes a contemplative tool for the owner.

This one shows the traditional kiku (chrysanthemum) design featuring a 16 petal flower (or star) at each end; imagine the concentration and precision that must go into creating it. The visual beauty combines with the texture, the gentle rattle, and the quote into a finished product that touches the senses and mind on multiple levels.

Temari are symbols of friendship and deep loyalty and it is traditional for mothers to stitch new ones to give to their daughters on the new year. I bought this one for my 11 year old daughter. Initially drawn to the vibrant purple and gold, it was the quote by Vladamir Nabakov contained inside that spoke to me: “Our imagination flies — we are its shadow on the earth.” It’s perfect for my Poppy who is always creating stories of her own.

Read on to learn how Kumo Temari is truly crafting for a cause!

Curator V: We’ve known you as a maker of chain maille jewelry and a pen and ink artist. Now we know you as a temari maker. Why temari and why now?

I’d never seen temari until summer 2011, when I first saw them on Etsy. At the time my main creative outlet was drawing in pen and ink, with a bit of experimentation with watercolor. I was immediately fascinated with temari — the history, the three-dimensionality, the use of pattern and color, their tactile quality. I love the playful aspect of them (they originated as toys) that is paired with their calm, “zen” nature. Almost like a kaleidoscope. As I am wont to do, I threw myself in headlong, taking online classes and pouring over instructional books. I’d done a little bit of sewing a number of years ago, but hadn’t found a niche in it. With temari it was a different story; even before finishing the first, I was hooked. My original goal was to make some for my mother’s birthday, but then I kept making more and more.

Curator V: As opposed to your other art forms, how is your creative process different when you make temari? How is it the same?

Similarities: I tend to gravitate towards formal, traditional arts & crafts that I can push in my own direction. With temari, they all start the same — a spherical surface on which to embroider. A centuries-old folk art, there is a whole canon of traditional stitches and patterns. That gives me a structure to work in, but then I get to play with color palettes, experiment with the patterns, and choose the quotations to go inside them (while some form of rattle in the core is traditional, a quotation is not) — all this make them very personal creations. Differences: My drawing is “stream of consciousness,” free-flowing, no real plans. With temari, I plan them out ahead of time, because I need to make specific measurements, guidelines, etc. I pick the colors before I start. There’s some room to experiment as I work, but mostly I have it all planned out in my head — and in written notes — before I begin.

Curator V: With your new shop, you have chosen not to offer custom orders. What brought you to that decision? How has it been working for you?

Right away I had a number of people ask if I could make temari in specific colors to match their home decor. Temari are ornamental, of course, and are generally displayed as such — whether just one on a stand, or as a group in a bowl or vase. And yes, my listings do include “home decor” in the title, in hopes of attracting buyers who might not find them otherwise. But for me, each is a little work of art, with a lot of hours, a lot of thought, and a lot of my spirit put into it. Not too different from a drawing or painting. So, I’d prefer not to start from the outset making something that is a “peripheral” decoration. I’d like to think that each temari resonates with the buyer for some reason more than just matching their interior decorating. Most of the people who made an initial request for custom work ended up as customers — and repeat customers — nevertheless. That’s encouraging. One day I might make custom temari that are commissioned for the quote they hold — something personal for the buyer — but right now there are just too many on the list of what I want to make to take on custom work.

Curator V: Your Cloudery shop benefited First Book. Kumo Temari benefits kiva.org. What makes you feel so strongly about creating for a cause?

I starting selling art on Etsy within a few months of Etsy’s launch. The longer I’ve been at it, the more I’ve found that giving back — in whatever capacity — is not only a great feeling, but a real motivation for creating. I’m a big fan of Kiva because it isn’t a charity in the traditional sense; it is a global micro-financing facilitator. People in impoverished areas all over the world are loaned money that they use to pursue their own livelihoods or small businesses (many are craftspeople), and their dreams for the future — and through their entrepreneurship are able to better their situations, improve the lives of their children (many borrowers are saving for their children’s higher education), and learn the skills to attain their goals and break the cycle of poverty (growing their businesses, repaying the loans, reinvesting their profits, saving some of their profits for later life or emergencies, and so on). I choose to loan to women, many of whom are juggling being entrepreneurs and raising children, and trying to break out of their “traditional” place in the home. Therefore, through my sales I can benefit financially, but first I help others benefit too.

Curator V: What can we expect from Kumo Temari in the future?

I’m such a beginner! My work is still quite basic. Temari makers in both the East and West may train for years to achieve understanding of more and more complex patterns, and to ultimately create original designs. In Japan, one might train under a master for decades. Even in the West one can pursue certification by the Japan Temari Association which takes — quite literally — years. While I don’t plan on that (I find as soon as I have rules or restrictions imposed on me I rebel!), there’s so much to learn. I’ll progress in steps with increasingly more complicated designs. I’m taking online classes that are teaching me the fundamentals of more elaborate and intricate designs. I’d like to try my hand at making miniature temari, too.

Our giveaway is perfect for the New Year! This temari is just under 3.25 inches (8 cm) in diameter, contains 12 brass rings (for 2012) and includes a wooden stand. The quote inside is by John Burroughs, an American naturalist. It reads: “One resolution I have made, and try to always keep, is this: ‘To rise above little things’.” To enter visit Kumo Temari (they’re selling so fast that you’ll want to check out her sold page to see her range) then come back here and let us know why you chose a certain one as your favorite. One winner will be chosen at random next Sunday, January 8th.

(Reading this via a feed? Here’s a direct link to the giveaway so you can enter.)

Tagged as: Fiber arts, handmade, home decor, sculpture