"Raden". The essence of traditional elegance and opulence
2020.01.16
In Japan, lacquerware with mother-of-pearl inlay has been used for auspicious occasions such as annual events, weddings, and hospitality parties. Mother-of-pearl is a technique introduced from Tang (China) in the Nara period and used to decorate the treasures of Shoso-in and the Phoenix Hall of Byodo-in. In the Muromachi period, Chinese mother-of-pearl mother-of-pearl was influenced by the thin shell shell technique, and during the Momoyama and Edo periods, the Korean mother-of-pearl mother-of-pearl technique popularized split shells, fine-grained shells, and shell dyeing. It has been applied to sword fittings.
Because of its history and the preciousness of its materials, lacquerware such as toso-zen with mother-of-pearl and gold decoration and ceremonial multi-tiered boxes began to be used, especially at New Year's and New Year's celebrations. In the mid-Edo period, when Japanese hairstyles developed and mage became gorgeous, many high-class kanzashi and combs were made with maki-e, mother-of-pearl and inlay. Korin Ogata of the Rimpa school has also made raden and maki-e combs as decorations, as well as jubako and letter boxes, and has gorgeously colored women on special occasions.
RADEN, which appeared two years ago, uses mother-of-pearl as a material for jewelry. Combining traditional mother-of-pearl techniques with modern design, this series is also popular among SIRI SIRI. Elegance, luxury and splendor, and seemingly incompatible elements have been put together as one piece of jewelry. Designer Naho Okamoto talks about it.
Balance between elegant materials and primitive yet modern knowledge
Okamoto: Mother-of-pearl is a material that I have been wanting to work with for about 10 years. However, because it is a material with strong Japanese elements, it gives an impression of being too exotic if used incorrectly. When I thought about designing it, I paid particular attention to its balance.
It was around that time that I met Mr. Yoshiki Matsuda, a Kaga maki-e artist. Mother-of-pearl is a decoration (decoration) technique in which turban shells, abalone shells, and butterfly shells are cut according to the pattern and embedded or pasted onto the base of wood or lacquer. Many of you may be familiar with the materials and techniques, as I have already introduced them in previous articles . Mr. Matsuda's craftsmanship is Usugai mother-of-pearl. The mother-of-pearl sheet with a thickness of less than 0.1 mm is used, so it is translucent and can be seen through.
Okamoto: Usually, this sheet is cut into small pieces and pasted, but when I saw the thickness and size of the sheet, I wanted to use it extensively to take advantage of the paper-like texture and express the beauty of the surface of the water shining. I felt it.
Around the same time, at the Nezu Museum in Tokyo, I saw a letter box by Korin Ogata depicting flowers. It is said that it was also big that he felt that it was a pun. The shells used as materials include turban shells, abalone shells, Sakae conch shells, pearl oyster shells, and pearl oyster shells. Even among the pearl shells, there are colors such as yellow, purple, and black, but Okamoto chose white pearl shells.
Okamoto: We emphasized the elegance of SIRI SIRI. I also wanted to cherish the history and culture of mother-of-pearl, which has been regarded as a luxury item. White lacquer is also applied to the back of the mother-of-pearl sheet, and white lacquer blends softly with the skin and creates a beautiful light.
The impression of mother-of-pearl varies greatly depending on the color of the lacquer applied to the back. The gorgeous rainbow colors commonly seen in mother-of-pearl jubako, bowls, and toso-zen are unique to black lacquer. By the way, red, yellow, and green lacquer were used for Nagasaki mother-of-pearl, which was famous as an export product in the 18th and 19th centuries, although Ryukyu's vermilion mother-of-pearl is famous for its white lacquer mother-of-pearl.
Okamoto: There are many types of white, from bluish to pinkish, so I asked Mr. Matsuda to make a white lacquer with a formula for SIRI SIRI. It is a color close to pink that makes use of the pinkish seven colors of mother-of-pearl itself.
And for the gold part, I designed it with reference to objects from the primitive era that I often saw at the British museum where I was staying at the time.
Okamoto: I thought it would be interesting to have a balance between elegant materials and primitive yet modern knowledge. So, I thought about a simple shape that would give a sense of distortion and the fluctuation of the hand. At that time, I was also interested in the relationship between the swaying hand when drawing with a pencil or pen and the lines when designing on a computer, so I left the subtle angles of the handwriting as it is on the computer.
Mother-of-pearl itself gives off a strong sense of luxury and Japanese aura. That's why we combined European modernity and shifted to a modern elegance. SIRI SIRI's jewelry is characterized by the fusion of materials, beauty and new shapes, and you can feel the wonder of this balance in the RADEN series.
Okamoto: I design with a flexible stance so that the color of the mother-of-pearl and the shape of the metal fittings are in line with the materials and techniques, and do not conflict with each other. It's not Aikido, but it's like measuring the distance. I'm not particularly conscious of Japan in terms of shape design, but the awareness of materials, methods, and design processes is very Japanese.
Can it go beyond the boundaries of existing designs?
However, it was the first time for both Okamoto and Mr. Matsuda to make it a reality, and it was difficult to make it a reality. The original design was to attach the seat directly to the metal fittings in order to emphasize its thinness and create a feather-like texture. However, there were also problems with the processing and strength of the cut edges, so in the end it was decided to add a 0.3 mm frame. In addition, the fitting work required by attaching the frame is of course highly difficult. After roughly cutting the mother-of-pearl sheet with a precision laser cutter, it is necessary to adjust each piece so that there are no gaps according to the distortion of the metal frame.
Okamoto: You can't go beyond the framework of existing designs by relying too much on existing technology and common sense. Thanks to Mr. Matsuda's high technique, the jewelry has a better atmosphere than I expected. The elegance and luxury of the mother-of-pearl is well expressed, and I feel that it has now become a representative material of SIRI SIRI, along with glass and rattan.
By the way, Okamoto himself owns a square and a Hindwing, and he says that he wears the square and the Hindwing side by side in the two holes in one ear. The interesting thing about jewelry is that how you wear it and how you enjoy it reflects your personality.
Okamoto: The overlapping abstract shapes look like the abstract paintings of Kandinsky and Paul Klee, which I have loved for a long time, and I am happy to wear them. If there is someone who can wear such an asymmetrical method, please do so. It's classy yet has a contemporary feel to it, which is interesting.
Okamoto believes that ornaments are hubs for drawing out and emphasizing the standpoint, thoughts, and individuality of the wearer. The RADEN series emits a translucent light that makes you feel like you are floating on gold with a human touch and distortion. Like tableware and trays that were used heavily in New Year's celebrations, and combs and hairpins that decorated women with celebratory patterns, jewelry that encapsulates the essence of traditional elegance and splendor of mother-of-pearl is alive today. It is a presence that draws out the gorgeousness of each woman.
Written by Sanae Kimura
Photo by Ayako Nishibori
<References>
・Kazumi Murose, Masashin Tabata, et al., “Lacquer 1: Life Crafts Sosho, Utilizing Local Resources” (2018, Rural Culture Association)
・"Britannica International Encyclopedia Subsection Encyclopedia" (2008, Britannica Japan Co., Ltd.)