Shibori is the Japanese word for
a variety of ways of embellishing textiles by shaping cloth and securing it
before dyeing. The word comes from the verb root shiboru, "to wring,
squeeze, press." Although shibori is used to designate a particular group
of resist-dyed textiles, the verb root of the word emphasizes the action
performed on cloth, the process of manipulating fabric. Rather than treating
cloth as a two-dimensional surface, with shibori it is given a three-dimensional
form by folding, crumpling, stitching, plaiting, or plucking and twisting. Cloth
shaped by these methods is secured in a number of ways, such as binding and
knotting. It is the pliancy of a textile and its potential for creating a
multitude of shape-resisted designs that the Japanese concept of shibori
recognizes and explores. The shibori family of techniques includes numerous
resist processes practiced throughout the world.
Shibori is used as an English word throughout this book
because there is no English equivalent. In fact, most languages have no term
that encompasses all the various shibori techniques, nor is there English
terminology for individual methods, which often have been incorrectly lumped
together as "tie-and-dye." Three terms for separate shibori methods
have come into international usage: plangi, a Malay-lndonesian word for
the process of gathering and binding cloth; bandy an Indian term for the same
Process; and tritik, a Malay-lndonesian word for stitch-resist. However,
these three terms represent only two of the major shibori techniques. In this
context, the word shibori seems the most useful term for the entire group of
shaped resist textiles. It is the hope of the authors that "shibori"
will win acceptance in the international textile vocabulary.
The special characteristic of shibori resist is a soft- or
blurry-edged pattern. The effect is quite different from the sharp-edged resist
obtained with stencil, paste, and wax. With shibori the dyer works in concert
with the materials, not in an effort to overcome their limitations but to allow
them full expression. And, an element of the unexpected is always present. All
the variables attendant on shaping the cloth and all the influences that control
the events in the dye vat or pot conspire to remove some of the shibori process
from human control. An analogy is that of a potter firing a wood-burning kiln.
All the technical conditions have been met, but what happens in the kiln may be
a miracle or a disaster. Chance and accident also give life to the shibori
process, and this is its special magic and strongest appeal.
Notes adapted
from: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.pattern/ShiboriDefinition.html