It's truly a completely different culture. But right now it's fresh and fun.

Shibata : I see. People say that it's a good idea to visit India at least once when you're young. Now that you've been to India twice, what kind of impression do you have of it, Kusano-san?

Is it Kusano India? I'm still not sure. I think I'll have to go there regularly to find out.
Issey Miyake and Jurgen Lehl have incredibly beautiful stitching. The stitching is so beautiful that I honestly think, "Wow, that's amazing." I can't create what I idealize by only going there once a year. I want to build a good relationship with India, the workshops, and the people. I plan to go again in September.
It's impossible to go to India from May to July because the temperature reaches around 50 degrees Celsius. It's truly a completely different culture, and while there have been various challenges, I'm enjoying it now.


Kusano: After I went to India last year, I found this book on my bookshelf, "Test" by Takeshi Matsuyama, which I brought with me today. I bought it 5 or 6 years ago and found it interesting when I read it back then, but when I read it again, I realized that it contains a lot about India, and there were parts that overlapped with my own experiences, so I thought , "What I'm doing isn't wrong."

This book is one of six volumes in Matsuyama's "Play" series. It says "Playing with Cloth," and to be honest, I don't understand the meaning of the title "Test," but I happened to find it in a bookstore and thought it looked interesting.
The book also mentions shoemakers, leather shops, and tailors in Italy, in addition to those in India, and these overlap with the shops that were featured in the magazine "Brutus" during the early days of the classic Italian fashion boom. I've never met Mr. Matsuyama, but it's clear that he does his own on-site research and selects and buys things from his own perspective, making it a kind of bible for me.

Upon rereading it, I made yet another new discovery. In the section titled "The Diamond of Fabrics," it mentions "shartouche, a fabric considered more precious than pashmina," but I can't find any information about it when I search online.

Even in Shibata's modern era, it really doesn't come up, does it? "Chartouche," "India," "fabric"... (searching on my smartphone). Indeed, it doesn't come up when I search.
By the way, doesn't "tessuto" mean the Italian word "tessuto," which means "fabric or material of clothing" ?

Kusano : Ah, as expected of an Italian (laughs). We've connected again! I'd love to get my hands on a "diamond of fabric" someday. Maybe I'll come across one if I keep going to India...

The power of Shibata 's books is incredible, isn't it? Mr. Kusano encountered one book, flew to India, and then, upon returning, picked up yet another book...
That's when I received a divine revelation (lol).

Page 3: Besides India, I'm also interested in ○○.