Sashiko is a way of connecting what is different.
Past and present.
Natural and synthetic.
Tradition and innovation.
By joining opposing elements with a single thread, new value is created. At the same time, through mending, reinforcing, and reconnecting, the life of an object is extended.
Founded by Sashiko artist Jun Sugimae, JunAle is a creative artisanal studio that redefines the boundaries between craft and product.
Since beginning his Sashiko practice in 2014, Sugimae has expanded the possibilities of the tradition by reconstructing its techniques through a contemporary perspective and bringing together elements from different disciplines.
SASHIKOSNEAKER is the art piece that most fully embodies this philosophy.
BORO / SASHIKO / TECH are the three axes that define JunAle’s creative practice: BORO represents the accumulation of time and the act of carrying things forward. SASHIKO represents repair and reinforcement through handwork. TECH represents contemporary materials, functionality, and construction.
JunAle does not treat tradition as something fixed in the past. It reconstructs tradition through a contemporary lens, expanding its possibilities by bringing it into dialogue with different materials, ideas, and disciplines̶ – and carrying it forward into the future. JunAle defines this practice and philosophy as “NEO FOLKLORISM”.
Biography – Jun Sugimae
Born in Osaka, Japan, in 1983, Jun Sugimae studied tailoring at fashion school beforemoving to London, where he gained experience across a variety of creative fields,including working as a fashion brand assistant and producing costumes for the stage.After returning to Japan in 2006, he began his career as a sportswear designer. Whileworking with advanced materials and performance-driven design, he developed agrowing interest in traditional techniques that have been passed down throughgenerations.
In 2014, Sugimae began exploring Sashiko, a centuries-old Japanese stitching practice.Using only needle and thread, he developed a distinctive approach that brings bothrepair and embellishment to contemporary products such as sneakers and technicalouterwear.
He became the first artist to apply Sashiko stitching directly to sneaker soles,expanding the possibilities of the medium. His practice has introduced a newperspective that moves between traditional craft and contemporary product design,influencing creators around the world.
Sugimae also works with natural dyes such as indigo and kakishibu, dyeing not only hisSashiko threads but also the sneakers themselves. This allows him to maintain a hands-on process throughout every stage of creation, from the preparation of materials to thefinal stitch.
Rooted in tradition yet reconstructed through a contemporary perspective, his practicecontinues to carry the possibilities of Sashiko into the future.
Jun Sugimae (JunAle)
https://www.junale.life
@junale