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Accepted Paper:
Heritage kept in the closet: revitalising bridal curtain in a Japanese shopping street
Lok Hang Hui
(University College London)
Based on ethnographic research conducted in North-western Japan, this paper explores how various stakeholders in a local shopping street revitalised bridal curtain, a personal possession invested with memories and emotions, and turned it into a cultural heritage valued by the whole community.
Paper long abstract:
Bridal curtain, or hanayome noren, is part of traditional wedding trousseau unique to some areas of the Hokuriku Region, North-western Japan. It has been registered as a national folk cultural property recently. Based on ethnographic research conducted in the Hokuriku Region, this paper traces the process of heritage formation of bridal curtain, an item used in traditional wedding ceremony. The most distinctive feature about the curtain is that it is supposed to be used once-in-a-life time. On the wedding day of the couple, the curtain is hung at the entrance of the butsudan room in the groom’s house where the bride passes under the curtain and greets the groom’s family ancestors in front of the Buddhist altar. The curtain is hung and shown at the butsudan room’s entrance for another week after the wedding ceremony is over. After that, the curtain is usually stored away in the closet. This paper explores how various stakeholders in a local shopping street revitalised bridal curtain, a personal possession invested with memories and emotions, and turned it into a cultural heritage valued by the whole community. Focusing on the changing forms of visual expression, this paper also illustrates how some latest tailor-made curtains act as a material presence of family members living far away and provide comfort to their owners.