Night Watch

Acquired
Night Watch

Night Watch centers on an antique Japanese indigo-dyed tsutsugaki image of a baku, the supernatural being said to devour nightmares. It’s a rare depiction, and that’s what gives this piece its character right away.

The reverse carries the baku’s tail, also in tsutsugaki. Both sides have original patches, along with additional patches I added myself.

With the insert, the pillow measures 15" wide × 15" high × 6" deep. The cover itself is 16" × 16", and I paired it with a 20" insert with a 200-thread-count cover and 65% polyester, 35% cotton fill.

I backed the antique fabric with heavyweight cotton canvas for reinforcement, finished the inside edges with overlocking stitches, and hid the zipper in the seam for easy removal.

The fabric also has slight areas of discoloration that reflect its age and history.
Night Watch

Nearby works

Other works from the studio

Nearby works that carry the same language of wear, repair, and time.

Into the Blue

Into the Blue

Into the Blue came together in my Brooklyn studio from antique Japanese cotton fabrics dating to the late 1800s and early 1900s, including katazome resist-dyed indigo and bengala iron oxide-dyed cloth.

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Garden Groove

Garden Groove

Garden Groove came together from antique Japanese katazome fabric with an indigo-dyed floral pattern. I added a single hand-sewn patch and backed it with canvas for reinforcement.

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Scripted

Scripted

Scripted is made from beautifully faded antique Japanese tsutsugaki fabric from the early 1900s. What gives this piece its character is the Japanese script across the surface.

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