A Living Indigo: Nogawa Senshoku and the Responsibility of Carrying Craft Forward

For over 100 years, Nogawa Senshoku has kept indigo close to daily life, creating garments that carry both function and history.

Bottlecap met with Yuki Nogawa, fifth-generation owner and Kendo practitioner, who shared about why he decided to help carry on in the family business of sharing "Japan Blue" with the world.

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You spent time in the United States and Europe before returning to Japan to join the family business. What did you learn during your time overseas, and what inspired you to come back and take part in Nogawa Senshoku?

During my stay in the UK, I was asked about Japan by my European peers, and I felt a sense of shame. Not just because I couldn't speak English well, but because I didn't know enough about Japan to speak about it. I decided to stay abroad a bit longer so that the next time I met these friends, I could tell more interesting stories and listen to theirs more deeply.

In the US, I learned various things while taking classes focused on biology. During that time, I realized Japan's presence in the world, seeing Japanese cars everywhere and seeing that Canon and Nikon were the mainstream cameras. When I joined a Kendo club in Phoenix to try Kendo there, a Korean member who was practicing Kendo knew our Kendo uniform brand, "Bushu-ichi," and told me it was a very famous brand in Korea. Hearing that made me feel proud of our family's craftsmanship.

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After returning to Japan, what was the primary trigger that made you decide to get involved in the family business, Nogawa Senshoku?

Until I went abroad, I had thought about returning to the family business with a somewhat obligatory feeling. However, recognizing Japan relatively within an environment outside the country, along with how people treated me and the things I heard about Japan from time to time, led me to feel grateful and proud of being Japanese. I decided that instead of working abroad, I wanted a life where I could connect people to the everyday charms of Japan that we often fail to notice ourselves. In that sense, it goes without saying that the family business, which involves traditional Japanese craftsmanship and Budo (martial arts), was the perfect fit.

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Nogawa Senshoku has been practicing natural fermented indigo dyeing since 1914. How do you approach preserving this long tradition while also adapting to the present day?

First, it is to clarify which traditions to protect. The traditional techniques we want to preserve are "Tenn-en-aku-hakkou-date" (natural fermentation), which uses fermentation with plant-derived indigo, and "Saki-zome" (yarn-dyeing), which dyes from the yarn stage. Regarding the way we communicate, it is to deliver indigo dyeing as something "practical" through our craftsmanship. By continuing these two, we can create the indigo-dyed fabric itself (the "material") dyed from the yarn.

While we are free to choose what kind of products to make from it, both the "Noragi" (farm workwear) that was the origin of indigo dyeing in this region and the "Kendo-gi" (Kendo uniforms) that demand shifted to later have history, stories, and practical reasons for using indigo dyeing, even if they are not easily appreciated in modern times. I keep in mind to create products that allow people to feel that our craftsmanship is familiar, everyday, and close to life, rather than indigo dyeing remaining only as fashion, luxury items, or art.

I believe the world is beautiful when people living today can touch indigo products and, through that, encounter the long history of indigo and the Japanese people as well as the efforts of our predecessors, feeling the charm of that craftsmanship. I believe such a way of thinking will lead Japan as a whole and the world in a better direction. When we clearly recognize this, what we should and should not work on naturally becomes clear. As a result, the items we create do not necessarily need to be traditional in shape. However, as an organization, I am always conscious of passing things on to the next generation, not just how I personally want to do things, considering social rules, employment conditions, average age, and so on.

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Aizome is often admired for its color and beauty, but it is also technically demanding. What are the biggest challenges in maintaining the natural fermentation process, and what keeps you committed to continuing it?

Rather than it being "difficult," what I feel does not suit modern times is that the counterpart is a living thing, and there are many things that cannot be helped by data, time, or feelings alone. How much can you accept that as your own responsibility? The aspect of being a family business strongly emerges there. I tend to the indigo every Sunday evening, but I feel like I would be punished if I thought of it as "tiresome" or "hard." Also, unlike workshops or artists working alone, another thing I must be conscious of is that the field must always have fluidity in order to maintain this scale of medium-volume production.

The reason and driving force are related to what I mentioned earlier, but it is because I believe that using plant-derived fermented indigo is the authentic path when considering the relationship between the Japanese people and indigo, and between Kendo and indigo.

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Your work includes traditional items such as samue and kendo-related textiles, as well as lifestyle goods and fashion pieces. How do you decide what kinds of products to develop, and how do customers influence those decisions?

We haven't been able to hear much customer feedback until now, but recently I have been making an effort to look at it often. We receive opinions from various sources, such as product feedback postcards and voices at our directly managed stores. Among them, I would like to actively try out things that I think are good.

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As someone leading a family business with more than a century of history, how do you think about passing on skills and knowledge to the next generations?

It is not to try to act based solely on "myself, myself." After returning to the family business and being involved in indigo craftsmanship, seeing the long history, the wisdom of our predecessors, and the craftsmen working hard on-site every day, I often feel my own smallness. I hope to become a medium myself to keep the movement of preserving indigo for the present and the next generation. And in terms of connecting, people are very important. I want to undertake initiatives that the next generation of successors will find attractive.

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Indigo-dyed cloth has a long relationship with kendo, from uniforms to protective equipment. How did this connection develop historically, and what makes aizome especially suited to the physical demands of kendo practice?

It is said to have begun with Sengoku period warlords wearing indigo-dyed cotton under their armor. The material's antibacterial properties played a role in preventing suppuration of wounds suffered on the battlefield. Later, the darkest color, "Kachi-iro," was loved by samurai as an auspicious "Winning Color," and darker colors came to be preferred.

After the end of the Edo period and into the post-war era, as Budo remained in modern times, "Sashiko" (quilted) material, which is highly durable, came to be used for the upper garment, which is easily exposed to strikes, as something to be worn during competition. Because of this, even now, the most historical attire for Kendo uses indigo-dyed, cotton, dark-colored, Sashiko material.

The Hakama is not Sashiko, but it is also made of high-density "plain weave" material using dark indigo-dyed cotton. In modern Kendo, there is basically no need for wound suppuration prevention, but since it is a sport where one sweats a lot, the indigo-dyed cotton material is excellent in sweat absorption and feels very good against the skin. Also, if it is dyed with natural fermentation, odors do not occur excessively even with just water washing, without having to wash it thoroughly every time.

Sashiko and high-density materials are excellent in shock absorption from strikes. The process of the color fading also fosters a heart that cherishes things alongside a person's growth, and above all, I think the standing posture when wearing it is dignified and suitable for the beauty of the presence in Kendo.

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Many traditional crafts in Japan are facing serious challenges today, including aging artisans and changing consumer habits. As a fifth-generation indigo dyer, what concerns you most about the future of aizome, and what do you think will determine whether it continues into the next few generations?

My greatest concern is that Japanese people, including myself, might stop finding the history and culture we possess to be attractive. If we continue to aim for or feel comfortable with high-paying jobs, lives where we can spend a lot of money, and environments where answers can be obtained immediately, I don't think manual work, traditional crafts, or on-site work will look very attractive. Whether indigo dyeing will continue in the future depends on what the people involved work on, what they communicate, and how seriously they can think about connecting indigo dyeing, not just for themselves.

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Looking ahead, what hopes do you have for Nogawa Senshoku over the next decade, and are there new collaborations, directions, or audiences you are especially interested in exploring?

In the future, I want to deliver the value of indigo dyeing to the world not only through Kendo clothing but also through daily clothing and lifestyle goods. Through those, I will convey the history and techniques of indigo dyeing in this region. I aim to raise profits and make the people involved appear more attractive. I would definitely like to collaborate with people who share our thoughts from the perspectives of Japan, craftsmanship, and indigo dyeing with mutual respect, but in those cases, I always ask them to come and see our site of craftsmanship. There are still many scenes where "practical" indigo dyeing can play an active role, such as outdoors, interiors, and the hospitality industry!

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You can follow Nogawa Senshoku on their Instagram, learn more on their website, and visit their retail location during your next visit to Saitama.

Explore the relationship between Indigo and Kendo on the Japan Blue Project's Instagram.

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