BISARRI is a Fukuoka-based bag brand which produces bags that are natural yet stylish. The warm atmosphere that the brand projects is identical to the style of the designer that made it, Ms Aya Tachikawa. So how did this young woman come to be involved in the bag making trade?
Interviewed by Takafumi Suzuki
Translated by Claire Tanaka
So, were you always fond of making things?
When I was a child, I used to like sewing dust cloths. I was an introverted kid, and I didn’t have many friends. Other kids liked to play outside, but I would stay at home and sew dust cloths. Also, if my socks got a hole, I’d fix the hole myself so well that you couldn’t see where the hole had been. Or I’d cut the sleeves off a shirt and sew them into socks. My grandmother still tells me now, “I thought you’d come to visit your granny, and there you were, going through my closets, making dust cloths.” I sure liked doing that. Making something from nothing. Having people use what I made. I felt like I was helping people out.
You used to have a rather unusual job, didn’t you?
I used to be a model for girlie magazines. But even as I did that, I was thinking I wanted to have some kind of behind-the-scenes job. The other models who started at the same time as me, after they quit none of them got legitimate jobs. Now I’m kind of embarrassed and I don’t really like to talk about it, but when I was a model I was in a lot of famous magazines. I had my savings from that, so when I started my apprenticeship at the workshop I was able to get by without any income.
How did you manage to get an artisan to take you on as an apprentice after such an illustrious career?
When I was 22, I heard that a friend’s father was making leather goods in Asakusa, and I thought, “That’s it!” Until then, I’d been thinking about how I wanted to do some kind of work like that for a long time. So I asked my friend to introduce me, and of course he said he couldn’t pay me at all, but he’d teach me the trade for free, so I was allowed to apprentice at the workshop.
What was it like to change to such a different lifestyle like that?
For the first half a year or so, all I was allowed to do were simple jobs like smoothing the leather, washing the leather, hand-stitching watch straps, and things like that. It took a while before I was allowed to actually cut and paste myself. Little by little, I was allowed to make wallets and change purses, things like that. My teacher didn’t talk much and he was very strict, but he was very kind. “Hey, what kind of thing do you want to make?” he’d ask, and he’d let me make things that he didn’t usually make, like handbags. “Go choose some leather from the back” he’d say, and off I’d go, and he’d see what I’d brought back and say “This leather is too thin. Go back and try again.” His wife was a really kind person too. She’d make dinner for me practically every night, and when I was feeling down, she’d say, “It’s OK, everyone is like this at the start” and cheer me on. It was like a traditional-style unpaid apprenticeship, and I did it for two years, but thanks to her I always had a hot meal.
Leather is purchased in Asakusa, Tokyo
A shiny row of tools
So you were quite well taken care of as an apprentice, then?
Yes, but at first it was so tough. I was always crying. If I made a mistake in the order of things, I got my hands hit with a wooden stick. Leather is a pretty expensive material to be working in, so if you make a mistake, that adds to the final cost, so I understood why he was angry whenever I made a mistake. I’d think about how I wasn’t bringing anything positive to the workshop, and that’s when I’d start crying. I cried every day. I’d think it wasn’t the right career for me. I’d be working with expensive leather and make a mistake, ruining the leather, and I’d just hide it under my seat cushion without saying anything. But every time, my teacher would say “what happened to that thing you were making?” and he’d ask over and over until I couldn’t hide it any more and I’d start crying, “Actually, I messed up….” I’d say, and he’d get mad and say “If you wouldn’t tell me, I’d never know! Don’t cry!”
A ha ha. That’s so cute.
It was so hard for me, I actually quit going once. I decided, “I’m not coming in tomorrow” and then I didn’t go, but the phone would ring and I’d ignore it, and it rang so much that I turned off my phone, then three days passed, and I thought, if I don’t go now I’ll never be able to phone again, so I called and they said “What’s wrong? Are you sick?” and I said, “I’m sorry, nothing’s wrong with me at all” and apologized. And I asked them, “Please let me try again” and they let me come back.
A bag made of suede
An off-white bag
After continuing to apprentice for several years, what gave you the impetus to strike out on your own?
Originally, I didn’t actually have the idea to go independent. One day, I collapsed at work and I was taken to the hospital. Then my teacher said “You know enough now to be able to do it on your own. Why don’t you go home to Fukuoka for a while?” And I heard that and I thought, “does this mean I can do it by myself now?”
Were you able to do well on your own right from the start?
At first, I went back to Fukuoka and I didn’t have anything to do, so I made some bags and gave them to people like my mother and my sister. Then, I made up some business cards and handed them out a bit. After that, one day, my mom’s friend bought a bag from me. And then more and more people started buying them, and I put some on consignment at a local shop. Little by little, my customer base started growing, and I started taking orders and putting on exhibitions and the business grew bit by bit.
Where does the brand name “BISARRI” come from?
I chose the name BISARRI because I like the round shape of letters like B and R. I just lined them up. There’s no particular meaning, I just thought it sounded nice. I mean, I don’t have any special concept or anything behind it all. But I do think I’d like to contribute to local fashion somehow. I don’t want to sound presumptuous, but young people in Fukuoka have an appealing rustic, naïve quality and I’d like to make something that can help bring that out in people.
So are you very particular about anything when you’re making your products?
I always sew everything by hand. And I try to use the best leather possible. I want to stick to hand-sewing with my work. I don’t want to expand past that. I want to make something that can be passed down from generation to generation. I’m so happy when someone comes to me for a repair. It makes me feel like they like it enough to mend it so they can keep using it. People tend to throw things away if they break these days, so I’m happy to do repairs.
Finally, could you tell me what your dreams are for the future?
Starting with leather handbags, I’d eventually like to have a boutique of my own. I’d like to learn how to make simple clothes too. Those are the kind of dreams I have now.
BISARRI
Ayata Tachikawa
Born in Fukuoka City, Fukuoka in 1979. Leather worker / leather designer.
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PingMag MAKE is the sister site to PingMag. We use an interview format to put the spotlight on a wide range of people active in rural areas. We document the voices of these unknown heroes and broadcast them to the world. It’s the Japan-based magazine about people and making things, coming out once a week. We’re passing on the passion, ideas, skills, and life stories of people who are building today and exploring tomorrow: craftsmen, engineers, entrepreneurs, and inventors. Stay tuned!
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So Beautiful. I hope to feature this artist’s bags in my store or online.
Please contact me if this is possible.
email: felicia369ny@yahoo.com
I may be in Japan during the Lunar New Year.
Posted by: Felicia Shelton on January 4th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
It’s very interesting how she made dust cloths as a young girl and now hand sewing beautiful leather products in simple designs.
Your site is wonderful.
Thank you,
Emma Howard,Hawaii
Posted by: Emma Howard on February 17th, 2008 at 7:52 am
süper site
Posted by: goruntulu sohbet on July 25th, 2011 at 11:53 pm