Kanshitsu Food Vessel with Design in Mother-of-Pearl Inlay “The End of the Waves”

About the Artwork

The motif of this piece is the scenery that I saw at Kannonzaki in Yokosuka, Kanagawa where my studio was located at the time I made this piece. To express the rocks being eroded by waves, I inlaid processed lead plates. I used mainly New Zealand abalone shells to express the waves; the blue gradation and the waves spreading endlessly. The base is made of dry lacquer formed into the shape of a bay with the ocean extending into the distance.

Read More

Description

• Category
  Lacquerware
• Dimensions
  H 10 x W 63 x D 31 cm
• Year of creation
  2019
• Rarity
  Unique

Techniques Used

Dry lacquer

For works of dry lacquer (kanshitsu), first a clay form is created and plaster is used to take a mold of the form. Next, repeated layers of hemp cloth and lacquer are applied to the mold until they are built up to the desired thickness. Finally, the mold is removed and additional coats of lacquer are applied to finish the piece. The hemp fibers are strengthened when the lacquer bonds with them, making dry lacquer an excellent technique for creating sturdy forms with a significant degree of freedom.

Mother-of-pearl inlay (Raden)

Mother-of-pearl inlay (Raden) is a decorative technique that uses the iridescent inner layer of abalone shell, turban shell, pearl oyster shell, or other mollusk shells. The technique came to Japan from China 1,300 years ago, and pieces featuring mother-of-pearl inlay are included among the artifacts at the Shōsōin Repository in Nara.

Read More

Selected exhibitions

• The 66th Japan Traditional Kōgei Exhibition (2019)
• Selected