DESIGN

Kokontozai: KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts /[KOKESHI]

『カーサブルータス』2021年8月号より

August 6, 2021 | Design | KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts | photo_Keisuke Fukamizu hair & makeup_Masako Osuga editor_Masae Wako　translation_ Mika Yoshida & David G. Imber

Searching all of Japan for handcrafted items that express its heart and soul, our proprietor, KASHIYUKA, presents things that bring a bit of luxury to everyday life. Her pursuit this time took her to a hot spring town in Miyagi prefecture and an encounter with Sendai Kokeshi, a simple, traditional toy, lathed from local wood and hand-painted.

The Sakunami-style Sendai Kokeshi figurine was first created toward the end of the 19th century, Japan’s late Edo period. Mr. Akira Suzuki’s studio and shop, Ganguan Kokeshiya, is located in Aiku Osenkyō, a small village built around the local onsen, or hot spring. It’s one of the three historically famous hot springs in Oshū province. The kokeshi doll shown here is 12 cm in height. “So small, yet so expressive,” says KASHIYUKA.

Small things are sweet and pretty. That’s all I could think, looking a kokeshi doll small enough to nest in the palm of my hand. That’s when Mr. Suzuki, third-generation director of the Ganguan Kokeshiya studio, located in Aiku Osenkyō, Miyagi prefecture, told me that, “Kokeshi dolls were originally made for small children to play house with.”

Purchase No. 39【Sendai Kokeshi】Primitive, charming — a most traditional toy, born in Tohoku.

“Its origin is a doll made on a lathe in the late Edo era throughout the Tohoku region by the kijishi. Those are the artisans responsible for producing the wooden trays and bowls to be finished in urushi lacquer. It’s said that they made the dolls exclusively for the pleasure of their children.”

What a lovely story! And that’s why the torso of the doll is so thin. It’s easily held in a small hand. This traditional shape is unique to the six prefectures that comprise Tohoku, and there are various patterns to distinguish specific areas, such as the Naruko style of Miyagi and the Tsugaru style of Aomori. Mr. Suzuki makes Sendai kokeshi in the Sakunami style, which dates from the end of the Edo era. It’s painted in a characteristic black and red.

“It’s so precious, how each one bears its own sort of facial expression,” says KASHIYUKA. Some of those in the uppermost tier date to the Showa period (1926-89).

The material is mizuki, a very hard, pure white wood from a variety of dogwood tree.

“They’re made of mizuki wood, from a type of tree found in Tohoku. The white color is well-suited to making dolls,” says Mr. Suzuki.

First, a long block of mizuki is set on the lathe and spun at very high speed. A planing blade is applied to reduce it to a fundamental form. Various types of blades are used along the process, gradually bringing it to its final shape. The wooden doll, its beautiful grain running from the head through the torso, is then polished and finished. Even before the face is painted on, it has a clear, doll-like presence.