Flower Pounding
Flower pounding, or Hapa Zome, is a process through which actual plants are pounded into fabric using a hammer or mallet. The print, including color and texture, of the plant stays on the fabric and creates beautiful works of art.
Quite literally meaning ‘leaf dye’, hapa-zome is the Japanese technique of smashing flowers and leaves into fabric. Traditionally, the plants are arranged into a mandala, but can be made into any desirable pattern. The process involves smashing leaves or flowers on the fabric, transferring their natural pigments onto the cloth. The traditional name for this technique is ‘Tataki Zome’, but the process took on a whole different name when it was popularized in the United States and other countries.
