Tennoz Isle, where PIGMENT TOKYO is located, is an island city surrounded by art-related events and galleries.

In the fall of 2021, an exhibition titled "Who is Banksy?" features British artist Banksy is being held in the city.

PIGMENT TOKYO is going to be holding a limited-time workshop as a tie-up event with the amazing exhibition.

[Limited time offer] Stencil Gold Leaf Workshop　-Decorating Patterns with Metal Leaf-

Dates: 2021/09/23(Thurs.), 10/02 (Sat.), 10/09 (Sat.), 11/06（Sat.), 11/27（Sat.）

Hours: 11:00-12:00／14:00-15:00

Information: “Who is Banksy?”https://whoisbanksy.jp/

*This event has ended.

Find the latest information about our workshops here.

https://pigment.tokyo/en/collections/workshop

This workshop includes a ticket for the above exhibition.

In this workshop, you can experience how to create stencil graffiti using the technique called "Inkin (印金)," which uses metal leaf and stencils to create designs and patterns.

Inkin is a decorative technique for dyed textiles, in which patterns are applied by transferring gold leaf or gold powder onto textiles using stencils.

There are a wide variety of transfer techniques, such as embossing and screen printing by using stone, wood, and copper, although the tools are different, and they have been required and used in various occasions as well as for transmission and missionary work regardless of time and country.

Stencil graffiti, which is considered to have started in the 1960s as an art technique, is a method of transferring images and letters using stencils and sprays.

Although creating composition and templates of the designs by yourself can be very challenging, in this workshop, you can experience stencil graffiti by using traditional stencil designs made by Japanese craftsmen.

In the following article, I would like to introduce the contents of the special stencil gold leaf (Inkin) workshop.

The instructor for this workshop is Natsumi Yamasato who also teaches the “Introduction to Metal Leaf” workshop.

While working as an art materials expert at PIGMENT TOKYO, she also holds lectures at universities, as well as being an artist herself, and is planning to have a solo exhibition in Kyoto in October.

Many of you may be new to the Inkin technique, but there is nothing to worry about, she will explain and guide you through the process in a simple way.

The stencil design you will be using is made of Washi (和紙, Japanese paper) coated with persimmon tannin dye, and is called Ise-katagami, a traditional craft that has been handed down in Japan for a long time.

Persimmon tannin is a dye that has been used since ancient times, made by pressing and fermenting still green persimmons.

It has also been used for architectural materials because it contains a preservative effect.

Next, let's take a look at what we are going to do in the stencil graffiti's workshop.

The stencil templates and metal leaf we are going to use are the assemblies of traditional Japanese techniques, I’m sure it will be a unique experience for most of you!

Firstly, we place the wet stencil sheet on top of the Japanese washi paper and apply glue with a spatula. The design patterns are cut out so glue is applied as the patterns on the paper.

The most important thing is to spread the glue thinly but evenly.

Next, we remove the stencil sheet and apply the metal leaf by using the technique called "Hiraoshi (平押し, a technique of completely covering the surface with gold leaves)".

In Japan, when applying metal leaf, it is carried on a piece of wax paper called "Akautsushi-gami (あかうつし紙, wax paper)", and the technique of temporarily adhering metal leaf on wax paper is called “Akautsushi (あかうつし, means applying and transferring)”

Using Akautsushi-gami is one of the easier ways to carry the metal leaf even for beginners, so participants will get to learn this basic method during the workshop.

After applying the metal leaf, it will only be applied on the glued surface and the rest will be removed later.

Since the metal leaf is thin and delicate, you can simply remove the air within the metal leaf by using a piece of cotton ball.

The metal leaf we will be using is Brass Leaf Akakuchi which has a beautiful reddish shade of gold.

After applying the glue and metal leaf, we will take a small break to let them dry.

While waiting, the instructor will talk about techniques and materials such as Inkin, Tensha (転写, transfer technique) and metal leaf, which may answer some of your questions during your art-making. Of course, feel free to ask our instructor if you have any questions or topics you want to discuss.

The glue will have dried by the end of the lecture and Q&A section, and now it’s time to remove the metal leaf.

As you can see in the following picture, we are going to use a pounding brush, a brush with a hard tip made of deer bristle to gradually remove the non-glued parts of the gold leaf design.

As you can see, the process of gradually revealing the gold pattern of the metal leaf is very therapeutic and beautiful!

You can remove the excess parts completely so that the pattern appears on the entire surface, or you can design your own unique way by leaving some parts as you can see on the certain area in the above picture.

Finally, swipe the remains away with a brush and you are all done.

In this workshop, the metal leaf is applied on a black washi paper, but we also provide a small hanging scroll with white washi paper as a second option. Feel free to choose your favorite one on the day. Of course, you can bring your final work back home with you.

The size of the black washi paper is 19cm x 15cm (slightly smaller than A5 size) and it can be trimmed into any size you prefer. You can enjoy the beauty of the metal leaf by putting your final work in a frame or leave it as it is.

The white washi paper that will be applied Inkin of the hanging scroll is about 15cm x 10cm which is almost the size of a postcard.

You can apply Inkin directly to the paper.

As the picture shows, the white background gives a slightly softer and brighter impression.

Even though the same metal leaf and stencil design are used, the artwork changes greatly depending on the color of the painting surface, which can be said to be the charm of Inkin.

Hope this workshop brings you a good souvenir or even a better memory along with Banksy’s exhibition.

Last but not least, Tennoz Isle is a city where you discover art in places like the stations, small streets, and buildings. There are also all kinds of contemporary galleries and delicious cafes, therefore, we hope you enjoy the view of this artsy canal town surrounded by Tokyo Bay!

Warehouse of Art TERRADA

https://warehouseofart.org/

Tennoz Area Map

https://www.terrada.co.jp/en/tennoz/

This workshop brings you a deeper experience by understanding Banksy's works from the angle of "the act of transferring '' through stencil graffiti and transfer technique.

【Instructor's Exhibition Info】

Natsumi Yamazato’s Solo Exhibition "8"

Date: October 26 (Tues) - October 31 (Sun) 2021

Venue: KUNST ARZT

Address: 155-7, Ima-chi, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto 605-0033, Japan

*This exhibition has ended.