Bōshu Uchiwa

By Kyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Kyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Boshu Uchiwa Amidake by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Latticework in the half-moon “window”

A single bamboo culm is split into 48 to 64 equal parts to make the ribs, which are then spread apart and woven by strings.

Boshu Uchiwa Decoration Uchiwa, Collection of Tateyama City Museum by Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

History of Bōshu Uchiwa

Situated in the southern part of Chiba prefecture, Boshu enjoys a warm climate. Thin bamboos with long internodes called medake have long grown in this area, especially around present-day cities of Tateyama and Minami Boso, People started using these medake bamboos to make ribs of round rigid fans called uchiwa in the Meiji period. The ribs were sent to Tokyo to be finished and sold as “Edo uchiwa.” However, after the Great Kanto Earthquake, it became difficult to process fans in Tokyo. The wholesalers moved to Tateyama, and since then, the entire fan-making process has come to be done in this area.

Boshu Uchiwa Decoration Uchiwa, Collection of Tateyama City Museum by Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

One of the characteristics of Boshu uchiwa is using the culm (trunk) of the thin bamboo as it is for the handle. Of the three major producers of uchiwa in Japan, “Kyo uchiwa” of Kyoto has a wooden handle, and “Marugame uchiwa” of Kagawa has a flat handle. In Boshu, a bamboo is cut so that a node comes about one third of the length from the bottom. The culm above the node is split into 64 equal parts to make the ribs, and the culm below the node is used as the handle. The process of making a single uchiwa involves more than 20 steps that require plenty of time and attention.

In the old local fishing villages, while the fishermen were out to sea, the women looking after their homes took to manual work of fan-making as a source of income. The number of fan-makers grew to about 1000, and Boshu uchiwa soon became a favorite summer gift, selling as many as 8 million fans a year in the early Showa period. However, with changes in people’s lifestyles, uchiwa became less of a necessity, and the production today has decreased to one tenth. In 2003, Boshu uchiwa was officially designated as a Traditional Craft of Japan.

Boshu Uchiwa Medake by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

How to Make a Bōshu Uchiwa

Choosing the Bamboo: Thin bamboo called medake that grow on the hills of Boshu become the material for uchiwa. The best bamboo can be found in the coldest days of winter; those which are especially thin and firm are selected and cut.

Boshu Uchiwa Peeling the Skin by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

The culm needs to have a certain thickness to make uchiwa, so only two or three fans can be made from one bamboo.
The skin is peeled, and the culm is polished.

Boshu Uchiwa Splitting the Bamboo by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Splitting the bamboo

The bamboo is cut into sticks so that there is a node at one third of the length of the stick from the bottom. A stick is fixed standing up, and the top part of the stick is finely split.

Boshu Uchiwa Splitting the Bamboo by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Using a traditional knife, the culm of the bamboo is split into 8 parts, then to 16, to 32, and finally to 64 parts. These become the ribs of the fan.

Boshu Uchiwa Weaving by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Weaving Process (Amidake)

The finely split ribs are woven with strings, one by one.

Boshu Uchiwa Making the Window by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Making the Window

The strings are tied on each side of the “bow” of the uchiwa, then the ribs are spread into a fan-shape. By pulling on the strings, the arch of the bow is adjusted to make a beautiful symmetrical window.

Boshu Uchiwa “Toasting” by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Toasting (Yaki)

The ribs are lightly heated over a stove to straighten the ones that are twisted or bent.

Boshu Uchiwa Gluing by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

貼り

骨に刷毛で糊を薄く塗り、まず絵柄のついた表紙を貼ります。

Boshu Uchiwa Gluing by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

After adjusting the ribs with a spatula to make them evenly spaced out, a white paper is stuck onto the back side of the uchiwa, making sure not to leave any air bubbles.

Boshu Uchiwa Cutting by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Cutting

The excessive ends of the ribs are cut off to form a round uchiwa shape.

Boshu Uchiwa Making the Rim by Masao Uyama, Uyama Kobo and Photo: Yasuhiro OhkawaKyoto Women's University, Lifestyle Design Laboratory

Making the Rim

A hand-made Japanese paper is cut into thin strips, then glued onto the rim to cover the edges. Finally, the fan is flattened with a roller, so that the straight lines of the ribs stand out clearly, finishing up the Boshu uchiwa.