WEAVING NATURE - The making of MORI
Inhale, exhale – and immerse yourself in forest.
Shifting shades of green. Rustling winds. Woody scents. Filtered sunlight.
MORI, meaning “forest” in Japanese, is a new textile by HaaT, created from a blend of weaving craftsmanship, innovative technology and the purity of the natural elements. The hand-finished jacquard textile has a unique three-dimensional surface evoking the essence of a forest – densely textured, intricately patterned, abstractly layered. Its starting point is nature – with the spectrum of green shades that define the natural world expanding the boundaries of textile expression.
MORI is the latest in a series of jacquard textiles by HaaT. The complex jacquard weave is created by cutting both the warp and weft yarns in two directions – a specialist technique used by HaaT since the brand launched in 2000.
The story begins in Hanno City. Here, on the rugged eastern edges of the Chichibu Mountains in Saitama Prefecture, the nature-soaked region has flourished as a hub for forestry, mountains and textile craftsmanship for over a thousand years. Its geographical location is key: the city is nourished by an abundance of pure spring water, which flows via natural underground networks from the surrounding mountains, rivers and lakes.
Against the elemental beauty of this natural backdrop, MORI is brought to life through a longstanding HaaT collaboration with specialist Japanese artisans at a factory in Hanno City. These artisans practice a finely-honed balance between human touch and technology, fusing meticulous craftsmanship and innovative experimentation with an intuitive open mindedness. This is reflected in their progressive use of German-made Dornier looms, which pioneered the production of jacquard textiles, alongside traditional handfinishing touches.
To create MORI, a diverse array of threads are used in the making process, to evoke its abstract depth and complexity. Separately cut threads are added to both the warp and weft – resulting in a densely textured jacquard with a rich three-dimensional quality. The human hand – slow, patient, meticulous – is the finishing touch: artisans cut each of the threads by hand, sliding an original metal comb-like tool across the textile surface. Through an intuitive dialogue between HaaT and the factory, artisans adjust the number of threads to lighten the weight of the textile, making it softly wearable as trousers, jackets, dresses.
The end result? A textile which contains – through its textures and edges, density and lightness – the organic complexity and timeless beauty of a forest.
