Tumi-isi Balancing Block Painting Workshop

October 10, 2019

Paint your own tumi-isi blocks with traditional Japanese and indigenous Australian natural colour paints!

Tumi-isi are wooden blocks that provide an interactive and visual way to give you a sense of balance and creativity each day. Resembling rocks, they replicate the fun of piling stones on a riverbank for both children and adults alike.

Designed by Daimon Kanno, tumi-isi are made from the finest 100-year-old Yoshino cedar and Yoshino cypress wood. Each block is hand-bevelled into different sizes and shapes by local artisans in Nara.

In the workshop, Daimon Kanno will provide an introduction to tumi-isi, after which participants will be able to sponge paint their own tumi-isi to take home. Three small tumi-isi blocks and natural colour paints will be provided; participants can purchase additional tumi-isi blocks on site if desired.

This workshop is for school-aged children. Best suited for ages 5-12. Children under the age of 4 will require the assistance of a parent or guardian (parents/guardians accompanying children are free).

This workshop is presented by The Japan Foundation, Sydney, Simply Native Japan and design office A4.

Simply Native Japan is a project coordination agency and product distributor of traditional handmade crafts from Japan. Founded in 2016 by Yukino Matsumoto, the daughter of a traditional kimono (Japanese clothing textiles) family, Simply Native Japan represents the belief that beauty in the simplest form can be found in craftsmanship and its connection to the artisan. Working closely with the artisans, Simply Native Japan aims to introduce traditional Japanese crafts into the modern lifestyle.

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