Octagonal Box with Design in Jigoemon Lacquering "Light of Dawn - Python Ⅱ"

About the Artwork

Inspired by a quote from the philosopher Nietzsche, “the snake which cannot cast its skin has to die,” the moulting and evolution is illustrated here using palladium and gold maki-e. The pattern in the middle can be seen as a trail of Urushi (Japanese lacquer), painted not with white but with red, the original colour of Urushi. This was introduced as a new attempt unlike any other Jōhana Maki-e creation up until that point, and was exhibited in cities such as New York, Washington D.C., Jakarta, and Hong Kong.

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Description

• Category
  Lacquerware
• Materials
  Urushi lacquer, Cypress, Hemp cloth, Gold powder, Silver powder, Pigments
• Dimensions
  H 11.5 x W 25.1 x D 25.1 cm
• Year presented
  2014
• Rarity
  Unique
• Paulownia Box
  Included
• Artist Signature
  Signed (name of artwork, paulownia box)

Techniques Used

Maki-e

Maki-e (literally “sprinkled pictures”) is a representative lacquerware technique that originated in Japan around 1,200 years ago. Maki-e is done by painting lacquer motifs on the surface of a piece using a fine brush and then sprinkling gold powder onto the lacquer before it hardens, producing luxurious decorations.

Lacquering

Lacquering (kyūshitsu) is the art of applying lacquer to a substrate using spatulas or brushes. The technique includes a range of processes, from reinforcing the substrate with cloth to building up the foundation and applying the middle- and top-coats. The final coat can be left as is (nuritate), polished with charcoal to a high-gloss finish (roiro shiage), or given one of several hundred alternative (kawarinuri) finishes. Lacquer application is known for both its technical difficulty and richly expressive qualities.

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