Indigo baths at Blaudruck Kóo in Steinberg-Dörfl in Austria
Posing with Margarete Zötl at the Färbermuseum in Gutau in Austria.
Photo by Klaus Rink
End of April, beginning of May I got to make a small journey to Blaudruck, blueprinting. A textile tradition once practice in The Netherlands. I wanted to do a deep dive into the traditional Blaudruck technique to uncover more on how the cotton printing industry in the Netherlands worked. How was the technique adapted to create products for the Southeast-Asian market? How did patterns change or were made to fit the use abroad? Read more about this also in the previous blogpost 'Preparing the Blaudruck journey'. Thanks to the financial support of KF Hein Fonds I was able to make this journey!
Blaudruck Kóo in Steinberg-Dörfl in Austria
Many blocks at Blaudruck Kóo in Steinberg-Dörfl in Austria
Cloth ready to be dipped in Indigo bath at Blaudruck Kóo
Calendering machine at Blaudruck Kóo
Me showing photos of Ankersmit to Josef & Miriam Koó
On Tuesday 29 April visited the Blaudruck Koó workshop in Steinberg-Dörfl in Austria. An amazing three generation kept workshop. It was to first stop on my Blaudruck-journey.
Josef & Miriam Koó welcomed us, me, Klaus Rink & Sonja at their place and gave a grand tour. We started in the room with all the wooden blocks, some from the first generation, other gathered & made over de years. Only one blockmaker is still active and of old age, no apprentice to follow in his footsteps. Experiments are done to create in other ways blocks, but they do not (yet) have the quality. Would have loved to look at all the blocks, but hopefully another time.
We continued to another room were a small rollerprint machine was. The machine was bought in 1930 by Josef Koó grandfather It so interesting to see this, I know it in a large size from the Vlisco factory. It can create repeating small design. They use it still to create meters of fabrics.
We went to where the Indigo dyeing in done next. Three 4 meter deep vats are in the ground. Two were filled, ready to be used. The fabrics get dipped 6 to 8 times. The floor in the room has turned a deep shade of blue. The dipping in done with a metal construction on which the fabric is hung. I saw this on old photos of Ankersmit in Deventer too . To see it is still being done now is amazing.
Behind a 100 year old door, was a 100 year old surprise that blew our collective minds. It was a calendering machine build by the grandfather as well. It filled the space, this wooden construction that in the past meters of fabrics go through and come out shiny. It was still used till the 1980’s. We all tried to imagine what it must have been like. It was Josef Koó favorite thing when he was little and his grandfather made a stairs and a little plateau for him to sit on and have a good view above.
We ended our visit in their store. So many lovely blaudruck things, from meters of cloth, to shirts and skirts and artworks. I picked out a cloth made together by Miriam and Josef. Using linocut to stamp the resist it is a lovely cloth showing the innovation Kóo is making in their practice.
Hans-Joachim Frindte posing in his booth at the Färbermarkt in Gutau
The amazing handmade blocks, or Modeln, by Hans-Joachim Frindte
Opening dance at Färbermarkt, dye market, in Gutau
On Sunday 3 May the Färbermarkt, dye market, was held in Gutau. This yearly market not just focus on dyed cloth, it is a blue printing celebration. On this years market were thirteen Blaudruckerei, blue print workshops, from different places of Europe, modeln makers (wooden blocks for printing, blockprinters (direct print on textile) and more.
Me and Klaus arrived the day before and in our guesthouse we run into the family Koó. At their table was Hans-Joachim Frindte, the last blockmaker from Mühlhausen. I was a bit starstruck, but was happy to hear he would have a booth. Josef Koó advised to go early, since his block would always sell fast.
Woke up super early, so though, why not walk around already to see who is where. The market opens at 9am, but most booths are ready before 8am since visitors came usually early.
The blockmaker’s booth was already filled with blocks. Asked if could have a look, took some photos and tried to ask some question. Luckily there was a friend/block-client who makes wallpaper who spoke English. We started chatting and Hans-Joachim asked question back to me through him. I got showed in just a few second how he bends the metal to fit in the pattern. The new blockmaker use machines and put the metal in by milling. It gives less fine lines and bigger dots. Hans-Joachim Frindte still does everything by hand.
His daughter arrived and we started chatting too. I said, how lucky I am here at his last market, she told me he says that every year for the last 4 years or so, but still goes the next year.
It was so wonderful chatting in more depth with them and learning more about this part of the tradition.
The blocks are easily recognizable because of the shiny ocher colour on the wood. So it was fun to see them throughout the day at different places like in the Färbermuseum
I bought 3 small blocks myself, a flower and two butterfly. Cannot wait to try them out.
Margarete Zötl above the entrance to the block-room at Färbermuseum in Gutau
The dye-room at Färbermuseum in Gutau
Blocks at the Färbermuseum in Gutau
Calendering machine room at Färbermuseum in Gutau
Next stop on the Färbermarkt was actually the tour at the Färbermuseum Gutau. The museum is located in an old home, not any home the first (and only?) Blaudruck family in Gutau. Josef Zötl bought the dyerhouse in 1868. I t was already a place where linnen was being dyed, but he started up the blue printing. After him two more generations followed with Margarete Zötl being the last one turning the house into a museum in 1968.
On our arrival day we visit their grave at the church. No mention of their legacy there, no piece of blue fabric. We light a candle and sat for a moment.
During the market 20 minute tours were given. We started in the dyers room, with samples of coloured wool, dye plants and the old tubs & stove. Next was the Küpenraum, the Indigo vat room. A level up, the Mangelraum, calendering machine room. This machine is being operated by a wheel, pushed by either hands or donkeys. Our guide also explained more on the blaudruck blockprinting. On the table were samples with the resist on and off. Upstairs was a display on the family Zölt and modeln/blocks. Also the private rooms of Margarete still intact.
Downstairs we went to the Zöltzimmer, their livingroom and a room with more blocks & two samplebooks.
What a wonderful museum! And this family & place is the reason for the yearly Färbermarkt in this town.
Györi Kékfestö Mühely from Hungary
Bácsalmási Kékfestő Műhely from Hungary
Traditional wear spotted
Einbecker Blaudruck from Germany
Miriam Koó cutting a piece of blaudruck fabric I bought
The Färbermarkt, dye market, in Gutau is a blue printing celebration. There were thirteen Blaudruckerei, blue print workshops, from different places of Europe; Germany, Czechia, Hungary and of course from Austria.
Looking at all their different designs, but also sometimes very similar, it is a great place to an idea of what they produce. I asked all the makers if I could make a photo when they were cutting meters for me.
Wonderful to remeet Josef & Miriam Koó and get a piece with a pattern that didn’t leave my mind.
Meet Einbecker Blaudruck from Germany. He recognized me first. He told me he started printing on old linnen on request for people and starting produce some on old table cloths & even nightgowns. I got a very lovely woven linnen table runner. From Györi Kékfestö Mühely got a motif I know from the Netherlands with grapes and from Bácsalmási Kékfestő Műhely a nice motif on linnen. They are both from Hungary.
It was great to see also all the visitors wearing blaudruck or at least blue or traditional wear. Throughout the day there is music, dancing and even een fashionshow. Got to print a cloth with blocks & eat a lot of local pasteries. So there is a lot to see and enjoy, next to the booths.
Janina of Zeugfärberei shows us the stencil we are using
Me and Klaus applying the papp to our cloths
Thumps up from Mika on dipping my cloth in the Indigo bath
Klaus pulling out the cloth from the Indigo bath
Removing the papp from the cloth.
Photo by Klaus Rink
On Monday 4 May followed a workshop at the Zeugfärberei. In 2014 the Zeugfärberei was started up by Janina & Martin, right across the street from the Färbermuseum in Gutau.
The idea behind their dyersworkshop was to bring Blaudruck back to this town, that had no blue printers since the 1960’s, but also to bring the craft into the future.
Janina explained how their journey in Blaudruck let them on the path of Katazome, a Japanese resist technique using rice paste and stencils. The traditional Papp, the paste created to resist in Blaudruck, is less safe, especially older recipes.
We got to choose from a wide selection of already made stencils and print our own cloth. I went for “streublumen”, a repeat of the local town logo & moths. I didn’t want to try to pattern match with a for me new technique and not my own patterns.
The ricepaste is very sticky and gets stickier over time. It is a bit like working with clay. In one of the photos you see Mika creating new paste.
I wasn’t necessarily focussed on not making mistakes, but Janina had a great expression for unwanted ricepaste on places; “Any spot you don’t want, will resist the best!”
After our resist dried enough, after about an hour, we started dipping our fabrics in the Indigo vats. They have two vats, each 2 meter deep. With a pulley system the cloths can be moved up & down. They renovated the location themselves and everything is not only really cool, but works really well.
We dipped our cloth in the Indigo for 5 minutes and let it air out in between. After 5 dips my paste started to dissolve, so stopped, but to get a good dark colour at least 6 to 8 dips are needed depending on the quality of the vat.
Picked our cloths up in the morning before going to Bad Leonfelden for the last part of my trip.
It was great hearing more about the Zeugfärberei and getting to work at their beautiful place for one day.
The generations of Blaudruck Wagner in Bad Leonfelden
Sample cloth of Blaudruck Wagner
Blocks and printed fabric at Blaudruck Wagner
Maria shows us the printing table at Blaudruck Wagner
Maria shows us how the papp is applied at Blaudruck Wagner
Blocks at Blaudruck Wagner
The Indigo baths at Blaudruck Wagner
Last visit on this journey was Blaudruck Wagner in Bad Leonfelden on Tuesday 5 May.
At the market at Gutau we already met the family, Karl, Maria & son Felix Wagner. Later that day we met them for dinner. It was nice to now see their lovely place.
With the fifth generation already helping with the business, Blaudruck Wagner is really a family company. Maria showed us kindly around.
Their blaudruck family history starts in 1878 with the first Karl Wagner making a 9 year journey by foot to learn Blaudruck. The second Karl Wagner collected a lot of blocks of which 26 still are being used.
Their blocks now are made by Hans-Joachim Frindte, but also made by themselves. Experimenting with 3D printing & lasercut. However it is not so fine as the handmade blocks. They also use blocks they bought during their travels in India. With two blocks they make a white & light blue pattern on dark blue.
They have 300 blocks and all are numbered. To have printed roles of linnen with on the bottom the numbers, so it is easier for customers to select patterns. These sample cloths are so pretty!
They prefer to work on linnen, but do cotton on request.
The printing is done on a long table on which they have a small table that can be moved above the cloth, so clever. The resist papp/paste is light green, it was well visible on the cloth that was being printed.
We got to see their two Indigo vats. Because of the granite in the rocks, they cannot make them deep, so they are only 2 meters deep and higher above the ground. Maria opened up the vat and there was the typical Indigo smell right away.
Maria explained how she uses the metal hanging racks. A long cloth on the biggest one, round & round, a shorter in a zigzag, like we did at the Zeugfärberei. Maria explained that after every dip, the cloth needs to be turned so the colour is even at the end. With the bigger rack it is easier because you can turn it, but for the smaller one the cloth has to be re-hang.
Their "Grensverlegger-beurs", which is a wordplay on grens = border, but the word means boundary pusher or to open up new horizons, really did this for me. It was so inspiring and so lovely to connect with makers in Austria. I saw so many similarities between the blaudruckers and modelnmaker and the pembatiks. Their passion and skills to keep a heritage alive.
Thank you everyone for welcoming me and special thanks to Klaus Rink for joining me!
