Geiko Fukune folding her fukusa (wrapping cloth)Nashinoki Shrine, Kyoto, 2020Archival pigment print on photo ragGeiko Fukune is folding her silk cloth (fukusa). It serves multiple purposes; primarily for symbolic cleansing of the tea ceremony paraphernalia. When not in use, the cloth is tucked into her obi (kimono sash). The size of the fukusa is often standard (approx. 30 x 30 cm), but there are different colours for men and women, for people of different ages or skill levels, for different ceremonies, and for different tea schools. Geiko Fukune is from Chiba Prefecture. She began her training in Miyaki Ochaya, inMiyagawa-chō kagai, at the age of 15 and debuted as a maiko when she was 16. She became a geiko at 21. Miyaki was built in the Meiji period. The current owners have kept the name but changed it to hiragana みやき instead of the original Kanji characters宮貴.
