contributor
26,975
edits
Changes
From SamuraiWiki
Jump to navigationJump to searchno edit summary
The sap of the lac plant - i.e. lacquer itself - is poisonous to the touch, in a similar manner to the touch of poison ivy or poison oak, until the material cures and hardens. However, as is the case with poison ivy and its ilk, a percentage of people have a natural immunity to the effects, allowing them a particular advantage in becoming successful lacquerware artisans. The fruit of the tree can be used to make wax, and was a prominent regional specialty export of some [[han|domains]] in the [[Edo period]].<ref>[[Mark Ravina]], ''Land and Lordship in Early Modern Japan'', Stanford University Press (1999), 80.</ref>
The sap of the lac plant - i.e. lacquer itself - is poisonous to the touch, in a similar manner to the touch of poison ivy or poison oak, until the material cures and hardens. However, as is the case with poison ivy and its ilk, a percentage of people have a natural immunity to the effects, allowing them a particular advantage in becoming successful lacquerware artisans. The fruit of the tree can be used to make wax, and was a prominent regional specialty export of some [[han|domains]] in the [[Edo period]].<ref>[[Mark Ravina]], ''Land and Lordship in Early Modern Japan'', Stanford University Press (1999), 80.</ref>
Today, there are perhaps only around twenty sap-gatherers (''kakiko'') active in Japan. Roughly ninety percent of the lacquer used to make lacquerwares in Japan today is imported from China.<ref>Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere, ''Crafting Beauty in Modern Japan'', University of Washington Press (2007), 20.</ref>
==Techniques==
==Techniques==
Lacquer sap taken from the tree is initially a white, milky color, and grows brown and then black as it is exposed to the air. Sometimes vermillion pigment is mixed with the lacquer to produce a red color. The lacquer is then placed under sunlight or artificial UV light to turn the blackening lacquer transparent, allowing the red color to show through; though the production of red lacquerwares is not unique to Ryûkyû, the strong sub-tropical sunshine there is often cited as a key factor making the Ryûkyûs particularly ideal for lacquerware production.<ref>"Shurijô Seiden ha sekai saidaikyû no urushi no ki. Shurijô no shûfuku, fukugen ga dekiru shokunin o sodatete moraitai"「首里城正殿は世界最大級の漆の器。首里城の修復、復元ができる職人を育ててもらいたい。」、''Fee nu kaji'' 南ぬ風 9 (2008/10-12), 4.</ref>
Lacquerwares are decorated in a variety of ways, including:
Several making use of gold foil or gold leaf:
*''Hiramaki-e'' ("flat ''maki-e''") - a technique in which sprinkled gold designs are covered over in a thin layer of transparent lacquer, without further polishing or burnishing
*''Hiramaki-e'' ("flat ''maki-e''") - a technique in which sprinkled gold designs are covered over in a thin layer of transparent lacquer, without further polishing or burnishing
*''Kirikane'' ("cut gold") - the use of cut strips or squares of gold foil
*''Kirikane'' ("cut gold") - the use of cut strips or squares of gold foil
*''Nashiji'' ("pear skin") - uneven bits of gold embedded in reddish or amber-colored lacquer, used as a ground
*''Nashiji'' ("pear skin") - uneven bits of gold embedded in reddish or amber-colored lacquer, used as a ground
*''Takamaki-e'' - a technique in which the lacquer surface is built up before being sprinkled with gold powder, creating three-dimensional designs.
*''Takamaki-e'' - a technique in which the lacquer surface is built up before being sprinkled with gold powder, creating three-dimensional raised designs.
*''Togidashi maki-e'' - a technique in which gold foil designs are laid down under later layers of lacquer, and the lacquer is then polished away to reveal the designs underneath.
Several making use of other materials inland or applied:
*''Hyômon'' - inlaid metal (other than gold)
*''Kanakai'' - ("metal shell") - the application of pieces of metal (other than gold) atop the lacquer surface to create patterns or designs
*''[[Raden]]'' ("mother-of-pearl") - the use of inlaid mother-of-pearl to create patterns or designs
==References==
==References==
*Gallery labels at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.
*Gallery labels at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.
*Gallery labels at the Tokyo National Museum.
<references/>
<references/>
