Blaudruck embodies stories through printing blocks, designs carved and passed down over centuries to reflect the times through patterns. Put simply, you print on textile with a dye-resistant paste, then dip the fabric into an indigo vat. The result is blue cloth with white motifs. However, to describe it this simply is to diminish the depth of embodied knowledge and experience required to create these white patterns on blue.

It is a choreography between multiple elements:
You begin with the dye-resistant paste, an heirloom in itself, passed through generations, with each maker guarding their own recipe and method. Then come the stamps, which must be placed precisely on the textile and repeated seamlessly to cover meters of fabric. Finally, the indigo vat, a living entity in itself, must be properly balanced to yield its blue.

Throughout this publication, I seek to not only document but also reflect on the significance of Blaudruck in contemporary material culture through interweaving the story of a retired craftsman with historical depth of Blaudruck.

Blaudruck is more than technique: it is a living archive of stories held in the rhythm of craft. Through carved wooden blocks, patterns are printed in dye-resistant paste onto fabric, then immersed in indigo to reveal white motifs on blue. On the surface, it may seem simple: stamp, dye, unveil. But beneath this process lies a choreography of precision, patience, and inherited knowledge.

Every element holds its own legacy: the paste, passed down through guarded family recipes; the blocks, worn by time and shaped by many hands; the indigo vat, which must be coaxed into balance like a living organism. Each step demands care. Each decision leaves a trace.

Photos by Sabine Rovers