from Noto : June 2017

30/06/2017

A Matter of Taste

A bowl…

When I visited Ryuji Ikehata’s workshop in Wajima, my eye immediately fell on this half-finished soup bowl, seen here upside down. The colouring looked good and the fact that some of the wood of the carcass was showing really appealed to me—as I thought highly unusual for a piece of Wajima lacquerware.

The adapted drill on which to turn a bowl so that the ground can be applied also intrigued me.

The black foot and lip are covered with a loose material fixed to the carcass with lacquer. This is done so as to strengthen the weakest points. I assumed that these areas would be finished with glossy black lacquer and that several applications of raw, moderately transparent lacquer would be used on the body of the bowl to highlite rather than hide the grain and tooling.

I was interested to see just how the bowl turned out and asked Ryuji for a photograph. What a surprise it was to see it finished in red.

The somewhat rustic appearance of the bowl in its half finished state had vanished under the red lacquer, giving the bowl a lighter and unexpected elegant appearance.

Ryuji Ikehata Photo © Copyright

Ryuji was unsurprised by my suggestion that it would look better in black with the wood grain exposed. But he says that he sells three times as many red items as black ones. Why? Well, for one reason, red is a colour of celebrations in Japan.

“It’s a matter of taste” is something we often hear. “Each to his own” in other words. These are usually expressions of personal taste but here it could perhaps be termed “national taste”.

The unfinished black bowl has a “folkcraft” character and in conducive surroundings could look wonderful. The red bowl to me is a trifle characterless and yet beautifully finished. The carving of the body is somehow wasted but made the most of in the unfinished bowl.

I suppose there is no right or wrong answer to this dilemma. Make both! Well yes but the manufacture of a piece of lacquerware is costly in both time and money. Ryuji feels it might have been better to have decorated the bowl more, thus justifying the price. I feel that more options should be offered so as to perhaps attract a younger buyer, for example. After all, the “vintage look” is popular at present. Although a stressed finish would certainly not be acceptable for a car, for some tableware and interior decorating items it is highly fashionable. Whether or not it is your taste is a different matter.

I just feel that it is a pity that lacquerware does not try to break into this area of market trends and offer more options. But in the end its all a matter of taste.

Bill Tingey Photo © Copyright

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Exhibition Notice—Taiaki Yano Exhibit at FunaAsobi Gallery

Taiaki Yano works in a number of different mediums including glass, ceramics, and fresco painting. His work in glass alone is extensive, covering mosaic glass, blown glass, and something called core-formed glass. This ancient method of working glass is combined with other techniques to form items with lids and glasses with feet. He uses mosaic glass techniques for plates and platters. He has even combined glass and terracotta in pieces of sculpture. We are also privileged to see new fresco work in the not-be-missed exhibition.

The exhibition runs for Friday 14th July to Sunday 23rd July. Open from 10:00 to 18:00

矢野太昭展

7/14（金）～7/23（日）

Gallery Funa-asobi 10:00～18：00

矢野太昭のガラス・陶彫・フレスコ画の個展です。

モザイクガラス、吹きガラス、そしてコアガラスといった、古代のガラス技法を

組み合わせて制作した蓋物、足付の杯。そしてモザイクガラスのプレート。

テラコッタとガラスを使った彫刻作品etc.。

また今回、新しくフレスコ画も制作してくださいました。

21/06/2017

Exhibition Notice—Takashi Shinohara

Takashi Shinohara Exhibition—New pieces of Suzu Ware from the Noto Peninsular

5th Floor Gallery, Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi Department Store, Tokyo

Open from 10:30-19:30 Wednesday 21st June to Tuesday 27th June

珠洲焼　篠原敬展

6/21（水）～27（火）

日本橋三越本店　本館5階　Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi　10：30～19：30

今年の新作をご覧いただけたら幸いです。

11/06/2017

Exhibition Notice—Funa Asobi Gallery

Funa Asobi Gallery—Porcelain by Kenji Nishida

http://f-asobi.com/tenpo.html (in Japanese)

Friday 23rd June to Sunday 2nd July—Kenji will be at the venue on Friday 23rd June

Kenji gained vast experience at a wheel producing the body for pieces of porcelain while working at the Kutani kiln. He has also produced slab built pieces, boxes and more delicate items as well. HIs work is special in that it allows flowers in a vase or food on a dish to look their best, without stealing the show—a harmonious ensemble. The fine pieces on show are likely to take us on a new uncharted path of excellence.

Photo Copyright Funa Asobi Gallery

04/06/2017

For a Monk

A Nest of Bowls

Sadly Japan’s resurrection from the ashes of war was in fact spurred on by further conflict beyond its shores. First came the Korean War when Tokyo became a Rest and Recreation venue for troops. The Ryukyu Islands as a whole remained under US occupation until 1972 while the rest of the country built for the future.

Vietnam was ravaged by war and Japan once again benefited indirectly from the fighting and made further strides along the path to total recover.

During these times industrial development in Japan gathered pace. It was, however, a time when the quality of goods being turned out by some firms was poor. ‘Made in Japan’ became a motto of distain. But things changed. Nowadays it is difficult to believe just how vehemently many Japanese products were scorned. ‘Made in Japan’ is now a mark of quality recognised around the globe.

This transition, however, was more or less confined to industrially manufactured goods. But what of the crafts?

It is easy to forget that Japan has such a long and strong heritage in the production of top quality craft items, which are either repeatables or one-off masterpieces. In many cases they are household items in daily use.

This is true of this nest of bowls named Oryoki. They have been produced in Wajima for many years, with the same attention to detail, precision and respect that we see abundantly evident in Japan’s industrially manufactured goods available today.

Forming part of the daily routine of a Zen monk, the shape and style of these bowls has changed little over the years. Their use and the orderly life style of the monks can surely be attributed with having influenced the way that a large proportion of the Japanese now conduct theirs lives. It is doubtlessly part of their national character— but difficult to deny or prove.

Zelkova is the wood of choice now as was likely in the past. The turned and lacquered bowls are robust and treated with respect can be used without repair for many, many years. In fact, being made to Wajima’s exacting standards, these bowls can be repaired if needs be and subsequently handed on from master to novice.

Although the demand for these bowls has now fallen, in the past considerable numbers were made and carried back home with monks who had completed their training at temples such as Sojiji Temple in Monzen. In this way the robust nature of Wajima lacquerware became known, recognised and respected throughout the country.

The degree of design excellence, attention to detail and design solutions evident in many craft items, too, have certainly influenced industrial designers at work today. The successes of the past have become part of their DNA, as much unconscious as conscious and something we could all perhaps learn from.

For more information on the Oryoki nest of bowls, please access https://terebess.hu/zen/szoto/oryoki.html. Also, there are design parallels with the Box of Stacking Trays produced by Wajima Kirimoto Woodcraft featured in the post on A Box of Trays published on 05/05/2017.