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Category: Topics

Tsutsu Tea Bowl, Ohinasama Dolls, and the Rhythm of Seasonal Delight

By:
Ai Kanazawa
February 18, 2022Topics Tea (Chado) Mitch Iburg

Ceramics by Mitch Iburg in our shop ->

During the month of February, a narrow and deep tea bowl called “tsutsujyawan” is used to prepare thin tea in Chanoyu, the Japanese Way of Tea. The word tsutsu means cylinder, and I was told that the reason for using this type of tea bowl, whose design makes it near-impossible to whisk and create good foam, is to retain the heat of the tea so that guests can enjoy it hot at the coldest time of the year.

Although I’m skeptical how effective the shape is for keeping the tea hot, the tsutsu tea bowl symbolizes “mid-winter,” and also implies that spring is just around the corner. And getting people into the spirit of the season through the use of seasonal utensils is an important aspect in Chanoyu.

Deep tea bowl by Mitch Iburg

Thinking about tsutsujyawan made me a little sad because I realized that I have not been able to practice tea with my teacher for the past two years because of Covid. Another year will pass before I’ll be able to prepare tea in her beautiful Mishima tsutsujyawan, an ash glazed bowl with white slip inlay decorations that comes out of a little paulownia box only once a year.

I’m surprised to catch myself feeling this nostalgia because, when I was growing up, I thought all this seasonal stuff was such a waste of time, especially the Ohinasama dolls decorations that come out of boxes in February to celebrate Girls’ Day on March 3rd. Families with daughters display dolls depicting a married couple in celebration of the Peach Flower Festival, which is also known as the Doll festival.

My parents originally had a simple Ohinasama comprised of a dressed-up couple already glued in position side by side in a glass case with a fitting box. Then my mother won a spectacular nanadan kazari (seven-tiered Ohinasama) in a giveaway by a radio station in the late 1970s. I still clearly remember the day she won it. We were having breakfast before going to school when the radio host started reading a letter from a mother of three daughters who could not afford a nanadan kazari…, at which point my overjoyed mother screamed, “that’s me!”

A few months later, several large boxes arrived at our house containing the nanadan kazari. The decoration was huge with a total of 15 dolls, equipped with miniature furniture for the bride, and because it took up most of our living room, it was totally incongruous. We were all excited to decorate them for the first few years, then gradually lost interest, except my mother. Her enthusiasm for the hard-won Ohinasama continued and she insisted that we take the whole set to Singapore when my father was transferred there for work several years later.

Nanadan Kazari Ohinasama in Singapore in the 1980s

Year after year, the Ohinasama came out of the boxes in tropical Southeast Asia and went back into the boxes promptly on March 4th. This is due to the superstition that daughters will not be able to get married for a long time if the dolls are left out past March 3rd. I think I was not alone in questioning if a happy and early marriage should be my primary goal in life, but more than that, I dreaded the task of boxing and unboxing these dolls and wished that they stayed in their boxes forever.

These days the Girls’ Day spirit of the season does not arrive unless I step up to the task of taking out the Ohinasama. My older sister in Japan inherited the nanadan kazari for her daughters, but whether they are out of boxes right now is unknown and I dare not ask.

Amazake, sweet beverage made from rice and malted rice; and sanshokudango, three-colored mochi sweets are some of the foods eaten for Hinamatsuri. I have yet to meet a child who likes amazake.

When I pull out my own little Ohinasama and put it on a shelf, I think back to the time we decorated the nanadan kazari. We could never remember where all the dolls went, and it was fun figuring them out with my sisters. Many friends came over to our apartment to take pictures in front of the dolls because few people had such a display. Over the years, the Ohinasama evolved into a marker of the coming of spring and its subsequent gatherings.

Which brings me back to my Tea teacher’s tsutsujyawan. The winter tea bowl is just one example of many utensils that are taken out and put away throughout the year, just as with my family’s Ohinasama. Like Christmas lights in December, these symbols give support to the traditions that anchor us and provide stability and comfort. I think that perhaps the Way of Tea is also a training in resilience to repeat these traditions. Through the simple act of preparing tea, we are learning to step up and to bring people together. I’m keenly looking forward to resuming the practice with my teacher, which shouldn’t be too far away now. She has been hanging the lights patiently for over 50 years.

The Opposite Month: Seeing and Doing Things Differently in Mid-Winter

By:
Ai Kanazawa
February 5, 2021Topics Tea (Chado)

According to the Japanese calendar, spring this year started a day early on February 3rd. You might be baffled to think that spring has arrived during the coldest month of the year, but please just accept it because the Japanese have to do things ahead of time, never after the fact.

The Setsubun -the eve of the first day of spring- chant, “oniwa-soto fukuwa-uchi” written by Japanese calligrapher Kokubun Kayo. On Setsubun, people throw soy beans while chanting these words meaning “out with the ogres; in with good fortune.”

While I should be feeling cheerful and beginning to look for signs of spring in my garden every February, I have been quietly dreading the arrival of this month since I started learning the Way of Tea a number of years ago. Why? Because February is the ‘Opposite Month’. This is the month when guests sit on the left-hand side of the host instead of the standard right in the tearoom.

You might think what is the big deal. Well, it kind of is because everything in the tea preparation has to be done in reverse. Starting from entering the room with the left foot instead of the right, to placing the tea container on the left of the tea bowl that is usually positioned on the right.

There are many differences, but the movement of the feet is especially tricky. So the first day of practice is like being in the Monty Python sketch of the “Ministry of Silly Walks” in a kimono. This can be devastating for beginner students because the muscle memory they have painstakingly acquired over many months gets completely messed up come February.

The opposite position of the tea container and the tea bowl signals that guests are seated on the left hand side of the host.

The inverted tea preparation method was created by the 11th Grandmaster of Urasenke Tea School, Gengensai (1810-1877), who devised the procedure to be able to use a large sunken hearth called ‘dairo’ in the tearoom. Contrary to what I suspected, this reverse practice was not created to literally keep the tea students on their toes, but to use the large hearth that would keep the tearoom warm for guests during the coldest time of the year.

The first-ever dairo practice I did was all a blur, and come March, I was guaranteed to step into the tearoom with the wrong foot. When I whined about the dire consequences of opposite month to my teacher, I remember her saying something like “it’ll start to make sense after 5 years.” Of course, I thought, everything in tea takes so long.

But surprisingly when the dreaded February came last year, which was much longer than the 5 years that my teacher had mentioned, I had a strange feeling of not struggling as much as years past. After the practice, I thought about what was different because I still made a lot of mistakes. Then I realized that it was maybe because I was able to imagine the guests on my left. For many years, there were no guests in the tearoom in my mind because I could only focus on what I was doing with my body. Movements made more sense when I envisioned what should be done in the sight of guests, and what should be done out of their sight.

Recently, as dairo season approached once more, I pondered how amazing it must have been for the guests to have been invited to the first dairo tea gathering by Gengensai. How surprised they must have been when they got into the tearoom and all the utensils were set in reverse. How thrilled they must have been to see tea preparation from the other side, and to realize it was all devised to keep them warm.

February is also known as umemizuki, which means “plum-viewing month,” and tea gatherings are often hosted for viewing the plum blossoms. This photo of beautiful kobai -red plums- was taken in front of the Mingei Museum in Tokyo.

For the record, I’m a big fan of Gengensai because he was also the first tea master to introduce the ryu-rei style, which allowed myself and Westerners to be served tea comfortably sitting in chairs. It’s a shame that I can never meet him, but how great that I can share his story with you here in America.

My tea teacher has not taught in person or remotely during the pandemic, so for the last few months the elder of my school has been graciously helping me practice at home via Zoom. And this week I’ll be starting my dairo practice. So why don’t you join me for opposite month?  It could simply be by folding your clothes in a different way, or setting new rules to your daily walk. You might think it’s a bit childish, but introducing a different set of rules to my ritual and focusing on them have given me a new perspective, and a new way to feel. The effect is very similar to the feeling of being awakened after encountering a beautiful work of art.

Announcement of Closure of Entoten’s Physical Gallery

By:
Ai Kanazawa
June 9, 2020Topics

I’m saddened today to inform you that the alignment of some dark and troubling stars in the Entoten universe during the Covid-19 Pandemic has caused serious financial stress and uncertainty in my business operations. In order to ensure the continuing survival of my online gallery, I have decided to close my physical gallery in San Diego.

This is a bittersweet decision, especially after having several successful shows and workshops that I felt I was on track to turning the gallery into a place that I envisioned: a place where people could meet beautiful crafts and to experience them being made and used. But with Covid-19, this is not the time for such in-person experiences and I will have to wait until when it is safe and people feel comfortable to do so.

When that future arrives, I will be doing pop-up shows and workshops in San Diego and beyond. In the meantime, my online store is operating as usual and I’m shipping orders in a speedy manner. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your continued support and hope that you are all able to enjoy the arrival of summer.

 

Every Bowl Like Your First: The First Kettle of 2020 in San Diego

By:
Ai Kanazawa
January 12, 2020Topics Tea (Chado)

Happy New Year! Thank you for your support of Entoten in 2019 through visiting my website, offering comments, interacting through the blog and SNS, and purchasing work at my gallery and online shop. I would like to ask for your continued support in 2020, so that I can keep on sharing the work and stories of the people who have dedicated their lives to carry on the tradition of handmade craft for use.

For this first blog post of 2020, I would like to share the story of my first tea demonstration that was mortifying and uplifting at the same time.

Table decoration for the Hatsugama with bamboo, camellia, pine, and nandina berries.

My new year began by taking part in the Hatsugama, which literally means the first kettle, for San Diego Urasenke Tea School’s annual tea event. This year’s preparation for the event was a little more stressful than usual because I was instructed to prepare tea in front of about 120 guests.

I was required to follow the procedure called Misonodana, a way of serving tea using tables and chairs. This style of tea preparation is called ryurei, and was first introduced to the world by Gengensai, the 11th head of Urasenke for the 1872 International Exposition in Kyoto so that Western visitors could be served tea while comfortably sitting in chairs in a non-traditional Japanese setting.

Misonodana and scooping the hot water with a shaking hishaku

In most matcha preparations, the water is scooped and poured with a bamboo ladle called hishaku, which is one of the most difficult utensils ever invented to master the use in chanoyu. It is very easy to spill, drip, or dribble water while using the hishaku. But when the utensil is used masterfully, it is beautiful to watch and the sound of the water poured from a hishaku is one of the highlights of the tea preparation.

The other issue with the hishaku that I discovered when preparing this year’s tea is that when I’m nervous, it is very difficult to stop it from shaking. The more I tried to stop, the more my hands trembled. It was devastating.

The hishaku, one of the most difficult utensils ever invented to master the use in chanoyu

After I finished my demonstration I told my sensei that because I was so nervous, I could not stop the hishaku from shaking and it was very difficult to prepare the tea. Her response was unexpected. She laughed and said, “that’s perfect. That’s the attitude you should always have when you prepare a bowl of tea. Prepare every bowl, like you did today.”

I wanted to prepare tea smoothly and elegantly because, after learning chanoyu for 6 years, I naively believed that I should have been able to carry out the procedure without any problem. But after hearing what sensei said, I realized that my desire missed the point of tea completely. I also felt a little better that I was able to make a good bowl of tea for the guests.

I hope that 2020 will be a year full of eye-opening discoveries like this for you too.

ENTOTEN’s first-ever brick-and-mortar gallery soft opens in San Diego

By:
Ai Kanazawa
July 5, 2018Topics

Entoten Gallery Closed in May 2020

July 2018 is a super-exciting month for ENTOTEN because after 6 years of being an online gallery, I just moved into an office suite in San Diego for the first time with a small physical gallery and space to hold workshops.

The new office is inside a business park next to the Amtrak coaster track. It is in an area called Bay Ho in San Diego, just east of Interstate 5 and across from Pacific Beach. It is also close to the new trolley line which took 30 years to get approved and will be up and running by 2021. Unfortunately, there is no stop in front of the gallery.

ENTOTEN’s new office (Address is 4907 Morena Blvd. Ste 1402, San Diego, CA 92117) is right by the coaster train tracks. There are also poles being built to accommodate the mid-coast trolley line expected to operate in 2021.

Sure, a beautiful gallery right on the beach or some fashionable retail district would have been ideal, but over the years, I became convinced that location is secondary to the importance of having an opportunity to show the beautiful work in person.

Cherry wood coffee scoops by Maeda Mitsuru in the ENTOTEN gallery. Over the last 6 years, Maeda-san has gradually revised and improved its shape. Next to it is a robot soldier card stand that my nephew gave me as a present after he visited Ghibli museum almost 5 years ago. “This is for you when you open your gallery,” he said. So here it is.

I learned this lesson by visiting numerous galleries in Japan, that are sometimes very small and not in the most convenient of locations. During the visits to these galleries, what stuck with me was the beauty of the items that the owners selected to display and the interesting conversations that I had with them. I hope that I’ll be able to create a unique space where we can share our interest and love for beautiful craft in San Diego.

“Eye opening” of the Tamashima daruma paper doll from Okayama prefcture. An eye is drawn to make a wish. I filled it with the hope to learn to see better, in reference to the “just look now” phrase that Yanagi Muneyoshi wrote to urge people to look at common handmade objects with fresh eyes and to discover beauty in our daily lives. 今見ヨ イツ見ルモ ima miyo itsu mirumo. The other eye is only drawn when the wish comes true.

The other benefit of my office location is that visitors will be able to park without the stress of finding a spot in car-crazy Southern California. And who doesn’t love watching the trains go by?

For July, I will soft open the gallery every Wednesday (July 11th, 18th and 25th) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on other weekdays and Saturdays by appointment only. I will focus my display items to things made of wood.  If you have specific pieces in my online shop that you would like to see, please notify me prior to your visit so that I can have them out for you.

I’m also planning on having a weekend ceramics event in August when I receive long awaited ceramic works by Hanako Nakazato, who is back in Maine! So stay tuned. In the mean time, please don’t hesitate to reach out and contact me at hello@entoten.com

ENTOTEN Gallery
4907 Morena Blvd. Suite 1402,
San Diego, CA 92117

Current Gallery Hours->

Click to see map->

Been There, Eaten That: The Fun of Exploring Local Specialty Foods in Japan (and Sharing Them with Friends Back Home as Omiyage)

By:
Ai Kanazawa
August 4, 2014Topics

This summer, my high school Japanese nephew is in San Diego to attend an intensive English language program. On the day he landed jet-lagged but wide-eyed, he asked a question that would perplex most locals and non-Japanese in general: “is there any special foods from San Diego that I can take home as omiyage (the social obligation of bringing back small gifts from trips) for my friends?”

bontan
An Omiyage shop at Tanjoh-ji Temple in Chiba Prefecture selling locally grown shaddock fruits.

After getting over the initial puzzlement of wondering why someone would ask a question suggesting they were already thinking about going home before they even had a chance to put their luggage down, the question was actually very interesting and difficult to answer. In any case, my nephew was making a query that would be standard for anyone traveling in Japan.

In Japan, food is often associated with different regions and landmarks that people travel to. Of course, many other countries also have regional local specialty foods, but what is astounding is the sheer number and variety of these items in Japan. The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has a list of Japan’s tasty secrets on its website that includes interesting (and sometimes dubious) list of local foods.

hiroshima
A man prepares okonomiyaki in Hiroshima, a local specialty dish. There are regional variants of this dish and the Hiroshima version uses plenty of cabbage and usually has a noodle topping.

Many famous Japanese shrines and temples have foods and confections associated with them, and Japanese people often bring them home as omiyage to share with friends and family.  This practice is said to have begun during the Edo period (1603-1867) when people could not afford to travel very often and visits to places like the Ise Grand Shrine was a once-in-a-lifetime event.

The pilgrims to the Ise shrine brought back the famous Akafuku mochi as gifts to their friends and family, who often pitched in to fund their trips. Besides food, this travel culture also supported the development of local craft to be taken home to commemorate trips -just as Kathryn described in her blog post about Kokeshi.*

Matsutake
Kyoto is known for highly sought-after Matsutake mushrooms. Priced between $200~$1500, I would not buy them as omiyage, but would look for a restaurant to taste a sliver of this mushroom when it is in season.

Obviously, many of the recent local food concoctions in Japan are pure commercialism, but I still enjoy exploring local specialty foods when I travel in Japan. Kyodo ryori or local specialties is a tradition rooted in the history, climate, and farming of a local region. It is not unusual for people to travel to a region with the sole purpose of eating the kyodo ryori.  I have traveled to Shizuoka to eat its famous eel, and driven up to Nagano to savor the soba or buckwheat noodles that they are renowned for.

ozoni
This ozoni soup is Kanto style with rectangular grilled mochi rice cake in clear broth.
In Kansai region, the soup is white miso based with round boiled mochi.

On top of the regional differences, many foods are linked with seasons and rituals and are eaten at certain times of the year. Some examples include eating pumpkin on the day of the winter solstice and ozoni (soup with mochi rice cakes) on New Year’s Day. It is fascinating to learn the background of how these foods came to be eaten in certain regions, seasons, and rituals. I continue to be surprised to discover local foods that I have never heard about or dishes that are prepared differently in other regions.

isshomochi
The issho-mochi ritual. The word issho is a unit of Japanese measurement equal to about 4 pounds and a homonym to the word that means “lifetime”. In this ritual, a baby that turns one year old carries 4 pounds of a round rice cake to be blessed with lifelong health, food and harmony. The mochi is later split and shared with all of the family members.

So if you stumble upon a little yummy something in Japan that has a story and tradition linked to that particular area, then why not share it with friends and family back home as an omiyage? The challenge lies in the task of discovering true gems hidden among the more plentiful commercial junk. On a recent trip to Japan, I discovered a regional roasted tea made from tea stems that was quite delicious in Kanazawa city. I brought some back as omiyage and my American friends loved it. I refused, though, to buy the cookies shaped like Tokyo Tower or Godzilla.

yagenbori
A store clerk mixes a fresh batch of shichimi togarashi (seven flavor chili pepper) at Yagenbori† in Asakusa, Tokyo. A little fresh pack of shichimi is a perfect omiyage from this store with a 380 year old history.
(click photo to watch a man mix the Yagenbori chili pepper while chanting the origins and effects of these spices)

Returning to my nephew’s concern, I still don’t know what will be a perfect little omiyage from California for his teenage friends. Please send me suggestions at hello@entoten.com Your input will be greatly appreciated. But any omiyage needs to get past those cute but precision-nosed beagles that wander the luggage carousels at Narita Airport.

*There is an interesting graduate research essay published by Leah Watkins of the University of Otago on Japanese travel culture for those interested in the links between Japanese pilgrimage and their modern travel behavior.

†Yagenbori shop is located at Asakusa 1-28-3, Taito-ku, Tokyo

 

 

From the Bottom Up

By:
Ai Kanazawa
January 14, 2014Ceramics Topics

Handmade ceramics come in all forms and colors and choosing one for daily use is a very personal experience. When I select a piece of pottery, one of the first things I do is to flip it over and examine its bottom or foot. This is because the underside of handmade ceramics offers a wealth of fascinating information about its origins and nature.

Koudai
The bottoms of eight cups by eight artists demonstrate their individual creative decisions and philosophies.
Top row from left: Joseph Pintz, Hanako Nakazato, Kristen Kieffer, Ayumi Horie
Bottom row from left: Peter Pincus, Marc Digeros, Birdie Boone, Bill Geisinger

Some of the questions that I ask are: What does the bottom look like? What type of clay has been used? Is there a foot, and if so, what type is it? Does the maker sign the pot? Is it trimmed on the bottom?

The answers to these questions are the choices that the potter made, and appreciating these decisions are enjoyable and more important than explaining them. The underside of a ware is like a window into the spirit and philosophy of the work and its maker.

The foot reveals the type of clay that is used to make the pot. This may not be obvious at first glance because most ceramic pieces are glazed, but it is quite easy to tell through a close look at the foot. Many potters spend a lot of time selecting and mixing the right clay and accompanying glaze for their work, so the choice of clay is a significant part of the story of their work.

Madarakaratsu
The stunning foot of a Madara Karatsu sake cup by Michael Martino of Gotanbayashi Kiln.
The fine wrinkles (chirimen jiwa) are characteristic of Karatsu clay.

You might also want to think about the choice of clay for your pot depending on its purpose. For example, I like noodle bowls in porcelain because they are easier to clean. However, I prefer teacups in stoneware because porcelain containing hot water becomes too hot to hold and the tea gets cold quickly. For antique pottery collectors, the clay can also reveal when and where the pot was made.

The Bizen tokkuri by Koide Naoe on left and small flower vase by
Bizen sake vessel by Koide Naoe on left and small flower vase by Toukichi on right.
Both pots are made in Bizen but are very different in clay texture. Koide studied under old Bizen (ko-Bizen) master Harada Shuroku and his passion for clay is clearly evident in the flavor-of-clay (tsuchiaji) in his work.

Lastly, the foot of the pot can also offer clues to the firing process that the piece underwent. If the item is fired with wood, it may have marks on the bottom from the wads that were placed to prevent it from sticking to the kiln shelf. Some pieces by the same artist may have different clay colors because they are placed in different areas of the kiln.

Hanako-Tokkuri
The foot of a wood-fired sake vessel by Hanako Nakazato with beautiful wad marks.

So the next time you have the happy chore of choosing a pot, go and look at its underside. I am so intrigued by this underbelly of ceramic ware that I always make sure there are photographs from this angle on my website and online shop. To me it is just as important as the other more visible parts of the ware because it will offer you another perspective into the origins and characters of these items as shaped by their makers.

 

Tied to Tradition: Revisiting the Knots in Our Daily Lives

By:
Ai Kanazawa
June 25, 2013Topics

There is something daunting about knots that get people all tied up –and usually it’s a mangled mess rather than an elegant bow. If you did not grow up sailing boats, fishing, climbing, pitching tents, or joining the special forces –and most of us did not- chances are that you were never taught how to tie knots.

My childhood was certainly a knot-free existence. When the need arose for me to tie something together, I often found that my fingers decided to go on strike and the result was something out of a Jackson Pollock painting.  Luckily, it wasn’t too much of an inconvenience as there was always tape to back up my less than perfect packaging.

A cord tied in a square knot holds the thick belt around the waist of a kimono.
A cord tied in a square knot holds the thick belt around the waist of a kimono.

Then about 15 years ago I finally decided that I wanted to learn how to put on a kimono by myself. My mother was so happy that one of her three daughters had finally shown a faint interest in the passion of her life while she was still alive. She spent many hours teaching me how to dress in a kimono and this was when I was suddenly confronted with the need to learn the square knot.

The square knot, or reef knot as it is also known, is used to tie the cord that holds the thick belt around the waist of a kimono. If you don’t get the knot tied properly, it looks funny and there is also the grave possibility that your belt might fall down in public. So to prevent such mishaps, I spent numerous hours practicing the square knot.

A few months ago when I was experimenting with different ways of using a furoshiki, I discovered that the square knot is also used for tying and carrying a furoshiki. So this knot is indeed very useful to have in your inventory of knot skills.

Square knots are often used to tie ends together on a furoshiki.
Square knots are often used to tie ends together on a furoshiki.

On a recent day that I was carrying a furoshiki, I discussed with an American friend about how often the square knot is applied in the use and making of craft. My friend told me about a ‘thief knot’ that looks like a simple square knot but has the ends on the opposing sides. By hiding the ends, if an unsuspecting thief opens the bag and ties it back into a square knot, the tampering is revealed. I also read that cooks on ships used this ‘thief knot’ to tie up delicacies like sugar to find out if the cabin boy was secretly helping himself to these goodies.

Above is a square knot that is indeed one of the most useful. Below is a thief knot. They look identical except for the ends.
Above is a square knot that is indeed one of the most useful. Below is a thief knot. They look identical except for the ends.

This story made me curious about knots, not just in terms of their functions but also how they connect to the cultures and histories of people from different parts of the world.

In Japan, there is a type of knot called a seal knot or fujimusubi, which is used to tie a bag carrying a tea container for tea ceremony. As tea ceremonies were elaborate rituals practiced by warring feudal lords, some complicated and decorative knots were used to tie the bag, making it almost impossible to be tied back by any outsider, allowing the lord presiding over the ceremony to know if anyone opened the bag to poison the tea.

The American thief knot and the Japanese seal knot were invented to serve similar purposes of addressing the lack of the trust that were uniquely tied to the cultural and historical circumstances of their times.

A plum flower knot used to tie a pouch.
A decorative plum flower knot used to tie a pouch. A beautiful knot hold us back from trying to untie it.

I also wonder about the origins of highly decorative knots. As some of the tea bags used by Japanese feudal lords had very ornamental seal knots, were other elaborate knots created as a way to signal that the contents they were protecting should not be removed? The charms or omamori that you can purchase at Japanese shrines and temples, for instance, have very ornamental knots. They usually contain scrolls, but we are told never to open them. A beautiful knot psychologically hold us back from trying to untie it, especially if we cannot tie it back together again.

Charm from Hakone shrine tied with a decorative knot Kanomusubi.
A charm from Hakone shrine tied with a decorative knot Kanoumusubi.

Studying knots and the knotting process can also shed light into the lives of people that employed them for everyday activities.  In hand sewing, for example, my mother taught me the loom knot or hatamusubi to add thread by linking. She said that this method saved thread, and was also cleaner and stronger than tying the thread off and starting anew. I recall rolling my eyes thinking about the negligible amount of ‘saving’ of the thread that would result. But now that I think about it, this method was passed on to her from her grandmother who lived more than a century ago when times were less prosperous, and consequently any way to be more frugal was valuable.

The tying process of hatamusubi, used to add thread while hand sewing.
The tying process of hatamusubi, used to add thread while hand sewing.

In perfect synchronization with my current infatuation with knots, my Studio Kotokoto knot ace partner Kathryn and I recently uploaded a YouTube video demonstrating how to efficiently tie a wooden box for ceramics from Japan. The video shows that when knot tying is done perfectly, it is indeed beautiful to watch.

A wooden box or tomobako that accompanies a ceramic lid-rest by Okada Yu.
A wooden box or tomobako that accompanies a ceramic lid-rest by Okada Yu.

The more I learn about knots, I find that each one represents a refined wisdom passed on from our ancestors about style, functionality, and safekeeping of our most valued possessions. I hope that this blog and video inspires your curiosity in thinking over the humble knots that surround us in our everyday lives.

Reflecting on Girl’s Day in Japan

By:
Ai Kanazawa
March 5, 2013Topics

Sunday March 3rd was Ohinamatsuri, or Girl’s Day, in Japan when we celebrate the health and well being of young girls. In a country where so many seasonal celebrations are male focused, it is a refreshing change and a special day to recognize the contributions made by women in Japanese society. It is also a day to enjoy the wonder of Girl Power, Japan-style.

Girl’s day celebration with a traditional display of dolls at the Kanazawa household in Singapore circa 30 years ago

In thinking about the place of women in Japan, I looked into the relationship between women and craft. According to the World Economic Forum’s 2012 Global Gender Gap Report, Japan ranked a disappointingly low but not surprising 101st of 135 countries in the gender gap index (*The updated 2017 Global Gender Gap report ranked Japan 113rd of 144 countries). It is embarrassing to see my home country hovering so far down in the rankings and well behind other major developed states. The U.S., for example, stood in 22nd place while Nordic countries dominated the top 10 (*the U.S ranked 49th in the 2017 report).

In the old and rigid world of Japanese traditional craft, it seems that we continue to be bound by male-dominated hierarchies. Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry designates traditional craft products and certifies master craftsmen in their effort to promote and preserve traditional Japanese crafts. As of 2011, there were approximately 4500 certified master craftsmen, of which less than 600 or 13% were women.

Despite these grim statistics, in the more globalized and populist contemporary craft community that Studio KotoKoto is a part of, we have come across many successful and vibrant female artists in Japan as well as the U.S.

Talented and successful Japanese nerikomi ceramic artist Sakai Mika showing her work at a show in 2012. Mika’s work can often be seen at department stores and galleries across Japan.

My visits to several craft shows in Japan over the past year offer a simple insight into how successful and influential Japanese women artists have become. In all of these high quality juried shows, roughly half of the participating artists were women. I also found that a large majority of visitors to these shows were women and they also were the biggest supporters of these artists. Many women travel around the country to visit artists and purchase their work.

A majority of visitors to craft shows are women, and they are the biggest supporters of craft artists

Moreover, while many Japanese male artists are quiet and rather insular, I have found that Japanese women artists are very open and willing to work with us in California.

So on Ohinamastsuri, I salute all of the fearless Japanese women artists that have made Studio KotoKoto such a wonderful and fulfilling experience. At least in the world of contemporary Japanese craft, girl power is a phenomenon to be reckoned with.

 

The Ties That Bind: The Quiet Bonds That Connect Artists and Users

By:
Ai Kanazawa
February 11, 2013Topics

In our blogs, we write about the lives, philosophies, and talents of those who make the beautiful handmade creations that can be found on Studio Kotokoto’s website. At the same time, the way these items are used by people in their daily lives are equally important to the story of these objects.

A couple of years ago, I invited a friend to my house for tea. It was a warm spring afternoon and the peach trees were in full bloom. When my friend arrived, she walked in with a handful of peach flowers and a slightly distressed look on her face. “I snagged my car into one of your tree branches and these flowers fell”, she apologetically explained. My friend walked into my kitchen and found a small hand-pinched plate, filled it with water, and floated the flowers on it.

Peach flowers on water in a mamezara by an unknown artist

I remember vividly how this innocuous incident moved me. On the one hand there was this simple hand-pinched plate and on the other the flowers. But when my friend put these two things together so naturally and unpretentiously, they were in a beautiful harmony.

Cafe au lait in a rice bowl by Hanako Nakazato

Everyday episodes such as this remind us that it is the boundless creativity of users that make the objects come to life. In our interactions with people, we have found that handcrafted items are used with great imagination and in sometimes surprising ways. These uses are often spontaneous, casual, and full of warmth and they forge a special connection between the artist and the user.

Cut pear served in glass cups by Nitta Yoshiko

We created a page called Mingei in Everyday Life that can be accessed by clicking on the kettle symbol on the bottom right hand corner of our homepage. This is where we share pictures that are sent in from users showing how they use their handmade items.

We would be delighted to receive contributions from you to share with us your imaginative ways of using Mingei in your everyday life. Your stories will illuminate the special unspoken bond that connects you with the makers of these beautiful and functional objects that you hold in your hand. You can write us or send a photograph to info (at) studiokotokoto.com

 

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