Neighbourhood Patterns: Wrap the Setagaya!

17 Apr 2008 Category: Arts & Crafts, Features, Graphics, Japan

Neighbourhood Patterns: Wrap the Setagaya!

A lovely geometrical pattern decorating the wrapping paper of Japanese bean sweets shop "Mamesho Hatano." Enter the wonderful world of Japanese wrappings!

As you look at this lovely pattern (above,) of green polka dots and floating doves, what might you think of? Actually, this is a wrapping paper sold from a small local sweet bean confectioner located in Setagaya, Tokyo. And especially the wrapping paper of neighbourhood shops like these, pure and homey, uphold a quite communal charm within Japan’s tradition of wrapping culture. Right now, you can gaze at many of these patterns at the Wrap the Setagaya - Wrapping Paper from Setagaya exhibition at Sangenjaya’s Seikatsu Koubou (Life Workshop) Gallery - exclusively from the local shops in Setagaya. Today PingMag dropped by the exhibition to talk to program coordinator Yumi Takeda.

Written by Ryoko
Translated by Kevin Mcgue

First off, we asked Ms. Takeda where she got the idea for the exhibition:

“There is a local shop here, in Sangenjaya, called Mamesho Hatano, which sells sweet bean confectionary. I always found their wrapping paper, which uses a motif of doves and dots representing beans (above), very nice. I began wondering if there weren’t other shops with wrapping paper just like that…”


They come in a variety of colours - clearly this one closely matches that of the beans themselves.

Yet another animal - a sleeping cow! Which shop might this be from?

Wrapping for - a toy shop, of course! For a child’s delight, these cartoon-like illustrations of animals.

From another sweets shop comes this brilliant red paper - much like Christmas wrapping paper.

Guess what this shop sells? Within these checkers, the product names are listed and the phone number as well. This black and white pattern gives this wrapping a retro feel.

At once, Yumi Takeda was drawn to the quality of the wrapping paper from these small local shops - something you cannot find in the overly sophisticated designs of major brands. The local designs give you a warm feel, and exude the atmosphere of a local shop in a local town.


A cracker shop features this strong lattice design on paper.

A somber pattern from another cracker shop.

How clever - this wrapping from a tea shop creates a beautiful pattern with writing.

A design featuring traditional good luck charms.

A traditional Noh theater mask used for old men characters serves as motif for a wrapping paper from a wafer cake shop.

Just like anywhere else, there has been lots of talk recently in Japan about making environmentally friendly packaging and reducing unnecessary costs. The written guide to the wrapping paper exhibition has something to say:

“The act of wrapping a product is a way of expressing care for the person who receives it. If the wrapping is simplified, then the expression of care is also lessened. However, if a shop uses very nice wrapping paper, or designs that really express the feel of that shop, then it is something that you don’t want to throw away once you unwrap the package. Reusing the paper in another way is one way we can help the environment.”


An elegant red stripped design from a tea shop - lovely for your 5 o’clock tea bag!

A beautiful and modern design in brown tones from a bean shop.

Sleek! A round melon in a box is interfused with the stripes.

A candy-coloured turquoise from a sweets shop. Think of summer wagashi!

Oh my! Utmost elegant pattern from a sweets shop. The delicate motif and subtle colours refine this ordinary paper even more! Note, the Japanese characters, eliciting the shop’s name, are also quite tasteful.

Certainly, the wrapping paper gives you a feel for the shop where the product was bought. Yumi Takeda told us about the wrapping paper used at the sweets shop Iseya (see below:) the main colours are a green for the shade of Japanese green tea, or pink. The logo delicately combines the mortar and wooden mallet used for pounding rice to make Japanese sweets, wagashi. Moreover, it includes the character for “3,” which is the first character of “Sangenjaya,” where the shop is located. We also learned that the mortar and mallet is a traditional symbol of the harmony between man and woman.
The wrapping paper used by the cake shop Villon includes a design with many circles of various sizes inside each other. We found out that these represent a table for tea time, with round cups on round saucers, and cakes on plates. The wrapping paper next to it is from Kogetsudo, which is based on an old map of the Kshu Kaido, a historical road built in the Edo period.


Japanese sweets shop Iseya’s wrapping paper has a color resembling Japanese green tea…

… and bright pink!

Awesome circle ornaments from Villon.

Also by Villon is a design based on a historical Japanese map.

We also found some wrapping paper with interesting textures, often printed with retro designs to give a nostalgic feel:


This wrapping paper resembles high-quality Japanese paper.

This vintage paper was formerly used at Mamesho Hatano, the one from the main image with the dots and doves.

We also found that a lot of shops use wrapping paper with flower designs. However, we were pretty surprised to find that a shop selling eel uses paper with a plum blossom motif too! (see below)


This shop shares its name with the tachibana flower, which is featured on its wrapping paper.

A gorgeous floral pattern on wrapping paper from a shop dealing in kimono fabrics.

This one resembles chiyogami, the colourful paper used for origami…

… and this would be a baroque gold floral pattern.

Colourful paper with a plum blossoms - from a shop selling eel!

Also at the exhibition, they show how to make small boxes and envelopes with recycled wrapping paper:


A confectionary box made from recycled wrapping paper…

… an envelope made from recycled wrapping paper for your used travel tickets or receipts.

What a filigree origami animal, also made from wrapping paper!

We asked Yumi Takeda for a message for you, beloved PingMag readership:

“I hope that exhibition visitors who live in Setagaya like the wrapping papers displayed and then actually go see the shops. It makes me happy when they realise that the shop is actually just around the corner. I hope people get to know their local area better and appreciate it!”

The exhibition filled with so much of colourful wrapping paper!

Yumi Takeda, thank you for this unique exhibition!

Info:
Wrap the Setagaya - Wrapping Paper from Setagaya
Venue: Seikatsu Koubou Gallery
Address: Carrot Tower, 3rd Fl., Sangenjaya, Setagaya Ward, Tokyo.
Date: Until Wednesday, April 30th. Open from 9 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Free entry.

80 Comments

  1. How nice! I remember some like these in communist Poland but now nobody uses wrapping paper any more.

    Posted by: otakugirl on April 17th, 2008 at 8:08 pm

  2. bravo, esp. iseya bright pink!

    Posted by: kagema on April 17th, 2008 at 9:53 pm

  3. wow .. these look really attractive. art percolating down to the grassroots.

    Posted by: pj on April 17th, 2008 at 9:55 pm

  4. Love these small touches of everday life!

    Posted by: Heather T. on April 17th, 2008 at 11:40 pm

  5. I think you’ve got a slight misunderstanding here. You remarked that one of the papers is “like chiyogami.” No, these are ALL chiyogami.

    Posted by: Charles on April 17th, 2008 at 11:43 pm

  6. Impresionantes, los patrones tienen esa simpleza de lo complejo

    Posted by: flko on April 18th, 2008 at 1:40 am

  7. How beautiful. :)

    Posted by: Koob on April 18th, 2008 at 4:37 am

  8. [...] It is wall known that japanese have developed a unique sensitivity to wrapping. Take a look to some very nice wrapping paper [...]

    Posted by: Wrapping « giacomo butte in tokyo on April 18th, 2008 at 2:03 pm

  9. [...] on paper 18Apr08 Over at PingMag is a lovely story about how neighbourhood shops in Japan use individually designed wrapping paper. [...]

    Posted by: Community on paper « Introduction to Design Research on April 18th, 2008 at 5:51 pm

  10. Very beautiful! I love them all!

    Posted by: Akai on April 20th, 2008 at 4:21 pm

  11. classy and inspirational… just wow!

    Posted by: chingwa on April 22nd, 2008 at 5:31 am

  12. [...] As you look at this lovely pattern (above,) of green polka dots and floating doves, what might you think of? Actually, this is a wrapping paper sold from a small local sweet bean confectioner located in Setagaya, Tokyo. And especially the wrapping paper of neighbourhood shops like these, pure and homey, uphold a quite communal charm within Japan’s tradition of wrapping culture. Right now, you can gaze at many of these patterns at the Wrap the Setagaya - Wrapping Paper from Setagaya exhibition at Sangenjaya’s Seikatsu Koubou (Life Workshop) Gallery - exclusively from the local shops in Setagaya. Read the full story>>> [...]

    Posted by: Kevin Mcgue - Tokyo-Based Journalist & Filmmaker » Neighbourhood Patterns: Wrap the Setagaya! on March 3rd, 2009 at 9:44 pm

  13. [...] Read the English version at PingMag» [...]

    Posted by: Kevin Mcgue | “Neighbourhood Patterns: Wrap the Setagaya!” Translation on April 17th, 2010 at 10:52 am

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