Photo/Illutration Murat Ensici spreads a rain-damaged kimono, given to him by Shigeko Yamamoto, in Itoshima, Fukuoka Prefecture, in November. (Takuya Miyano)

FUKUOKA--When torrential rains caused extensive hardship and damage in Kumamoto Prefecture this summer, Murat Ensici felt compelled to act.

The downpour triggered widespread flooding in urban areas of Hitoyoshi after the Kumagawa river burst its banks on July 4.

Four days later, Ensici, 44, loaded his car with relief supplies and drove for six hours straight to reach the city from Fukuoka, also in the Kyushu region.

Ensici, who came to Japan from Turkey in 2003, imports and sells traditional Turkish carpets called kilims in Fukuoka and exhibits them across the country.

He visited the Ryokan Takarayu inn, since he knew owner Shigeko Yamamoto well and the inn had previously offered to serve as a venue for a kilim exhibition.

Marks on the building showed it had flooded up to the second floor.

He helped the inn's staff take out household furnishings and remove mud.

Two weeks later, Ensici returned to Hitoyoshi with relief money and Turkish sweets.

He found 10 paulownia wood “tansu” chests of drawers set out in front of the inn.

They were water-sodden, and the drawers were stuck shut.

Yamamoto, 59, gave Ensici permission to open the drawers with a crowbar. Inside were about 200 soaking wet kimono.

Ensici was saddened that so many beautiful items of the traditional Japanese garment had been rendered unwearable by the rain.

Yamamoto told Ensici she was going to discard the kimono. But Ensici felt she was being too hasty and decided to try cleaning them himself.

He filled a pool at Yamamoto’s home in Hitoyoshi and spent two days washing mud off the kimono. He was able to restore three kimono made of “Oshima tsumugi” silk, but could not save the rest.

Still, Ensici decided not to scrap the remaining kimono, and Yamamoto gave him some of the clothing.

Ensici then hit upon the idea of holding an exhibition in Turkey to spotlight the disaster and help weave closer ties between Turkey and Japan.

“It may be a small thing, but I want to make people who suffered from disasters feel positive,” Ensici said. “I hope it helps connect the hearts of people in Turkey and Japan.”

The damaged kimono still bear traces of mud, so he plans to cut severely damaged ones into scraps and combine them with kilim fabrics to make accessories for the exhibition.

“I really appreciate how he takes good care of cloth,” Yamamoto said.

Ensici’s hometown is in Zonguldak province, northern Turkey, which itself has experienced river flooding.

Many people in Turkey still recall the emergency assistance Japan provided after the country was rocked by a major earthquake in 1999.

Ensici hopes his exhibition will encourage Turkish people to think about the damage done by the torrential rain.

He plans to display photos of disaster-affected areas at the venue and prepare local specialties from Hitoyoshi, including tea and traditional Japanese confectionery, for visitors.

This is his first time to try his hand at organizing an exhibition in his home country, even though he has staged kilim exhibits across Japan.

Ensici may still face difficulties holding the exhibition, depending on how the novel coronavirus pandemic plays out, but he remains optimistic.

Ensici has visited Hitoyoshi on an almost monthly basis since July. He plans to bring some of the proceeds from kilim sales as relief money as early as next week.

Related News