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| I would like, now, to give a brief description of the techniques and materials I use in my work. When we Japanese talk of sculpture, we generally think of wooden Buddhist statuary. It is said that Japanese culture can be traced back for approximately two thousand years, and during this period, approximately ninety percent of all the sculpture that has been produced is made of wood - metal, stone or other materials accounting for the remaining ten percent. Looked at historically, it can be said that the Chinese worked mainly in stone and pottery in their formative arts while Koreans preferred stone and metal. Although these two countries are very close geographically and resemble each other spiritually and culturally, the choice of materials has been strongly influenced by the natural environment and character of the inhabitants. In Japan the preference for wood was not confined solely to sculpture and a similar ratio used to be seen in architecture, the crafts and everyday utensils. My works are all carved from Japanese cypress, a conifer native to Japan, and then coated with lacquer - a beautiful kind of paint derived from the sap of the lacquer tree. They are then colored using mineral pigments mixed with animal glue. This technique was developed over one thousand years ago in the production of Buddhist statues and other crafts. I also employ two techniques, developed in traditional Japanese sculpture, to produce the wooden base for the carving, one is called "Kiwari" and the other is "Yosegi." "Kiwari" is a method by which each of the sections of the statue can be calculated to the same ratio, thus allowing the wood to be cut to the necessary lengths. The wood used in sculpture is not single block, but comprises of several lengths of rectangular lumber that have been joined together to create a strong base. (illustration 4-�@) This not only means that no wood is wasted, but also that the various sections of the figure can be separated and worked on simultaneously by numerous sculptors. This is what is known as "Yosegi." The use of these techniques made it possible to create standardized, highly finished buildings or sculptures in large quantities in a short time and although they were developed approximately one thousand years ago, they are very similar to those used on production lines today. (illustration 4-�A�B) In order to prevent the work from splitting as the wood dries, the statues are split in two and the wood on the inside removed making them hollow. This technique is known as "Uchiguri." The photograph entitled "Arhat (Buddha's Disciple)" provides a good example of the way these various techniques have been put to use. The body, from the shoulder to the waist, comprises of six vertical pieces of wood, while the head, both arms and both legs have been made from separate pieces of wood and fitted on later illustrating the "Yosegi" technique and the interior has also been hollowed out using the "Uchigiri" technique. The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston house superb collections of old Japanese art and the majority of the wooden Buddhist statues they have on display were made using the same techniques as this statue. Once the basic figure has been made in this way it is then given a coating of natural lacquer and colored using natural mineral pigments mixed with animal glue. (illustration 4-�C) Although the sculptors of Buddhist statues still use these traditional techniques in their work, I think it is safe to say that there are very few other people who use them in contemporary art. I learned them through the experience I gained whilst working on the renovation of approximately forty old Buddhist statues and I continued to use them today, not in a traditional context, but in contemporary art. |
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UWAMUKI PROJECT uwamukip@big.or.jp All the text and images used on this site is copyrighted and its unauthorized use is strictly forbidden. |
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