JC21 TAKEYARI [canvas] × Faye Toogood

Kurashiki City in Okayama Prefecture was a major production region for cotton from the middle ages through the Edo period, which in turn fueled the development of the local textile and weaving industries. Today, the area produces roughly 70% of Japanese domestic canvas. Canvas, a thick, plain woven fabric made from twisted threads, is used in a wide range of applications from boat sails and tents, to canvas bags for school students, due to its excellent durability and ventilation properties. The canvas produced in Kurashiki City is known for its high-quality thread that is woven using advanced techniques, as well as the uniformity of the selvedge, achieved through great care in the production process and modifications to the looms. Within Kurashiki, TAKEYARI is particularly known for its ability to weave canvas at a thickness impossible elsewhere thanks to its use of antique Belgian shuttle looms that are becoming extremely rare.
In an attempt to create a product that would put canvas to use in modern life in an entirely new way, designer Faye Toogood focused her attention on the essence of canvas and proposed a new type of interior product that exists in a conceptual space between a sofa and cushion. The result combines the material’s high quality and thickness with hand-woven warmth and a unique character that becomes increasingly distinct with each use, bringing to life the formulation, function, and form of the canvas fabric of which TAKEYARI is proud.