伝統技術を生かす

呂色職人の工房では、現在制作中の石目乾漆や様々な漆塗りの仕上げや製品を見ることができた。

輪島塗のフリーカップ制作の塗りの打合せのために呂色職人の工房へ来たのだけれども、本題に入る前に塗りというか輪島塗の可能性みたいな話になって、輪島塗を万年筆に施したり、他に乾漆途中の漆器や制作完成間際のフリーカップなどを見せて貰った。

中でも、これは呂色職人の方が自分用に制作しているらしいが、1号サイズの大きさの板に自分で好きなように好きな色の漆を塗り、それに対して好きなように絵柄を描いてと蒔絵職人や沈金職人に渡して制作したものが良く、絵柄の繊細さ、精緻さに加え、その絵柄の図案的処理が古臭くなく、現代的で素晴らしかった。輪島塗は全ての工程が分業体制で、それぞれの工程に専門の職人がいるが、それぞれの職人の質の高さと文化的意識の高さと好奇心に輪島塗の奥深さと底力を見たようだった。

ただ残念なのは、これらの職人に後継者がいないこと。これらの技術を生かす場がないのだ。後継者を育てるためには、その技術を生かす場をつくらないといけなくて、そのためには職人の技術を最大限に生かす無理難題な仕事を持ち込まないといけないし、それだけでは仕事の絶対数が少ないかもしれないから、職人の技術を最大限に生かすものを現代的なセンスで勇気を持ってこれですとつくり出す人が必要、会社や組織では無くて、人でないと。「類は友を呼ぶ」という言葉があるが、「類」すなわち「集まり」の元は人で、会社や組織では当然利害が生まれ、無理難題な仕事を職人に持ち込むことを躊躇するようになるから、無理難題な仕事を持ち込む人に人が集まり類になると、友を呼べて、共感が得られ、輪が広がり、職人の技術を最大限に生かす場ができる。

輪島で現代的なセンスで漆器をつくるお店を訪れたが、輪島の職人の技術を全然生かしていないし、老舗を訪れると職人の技術を最大限に生かしたものがあるが古臭い。漆器以外の伝統工芸にも言えることだが、後継者が育たないのは、伝統技術を生かした仕事が産業として成り立っていないため、産業として成り立たないのは、宣伝やブランディングが足りないという人もいるけれど、単につくっているものが受け入られていないだけ、何をつくれば良いのかがわかっている人がいないから。

呂色職人が自分用に制作したものに銀色の漆塗りのものがあり、一緒に行った塗師の方もひと目見て「これいいじゃない」と言ったもので、私も気に入った。呂色職人にきくと、その銀色は錫だそうで、錫を焼いて色粉にしたもので、焼かないで錫を使うと臭いらしい。他に、その錫と銀の漆を塗り分けたお箸があり見せてもらうと、錫と銀では微妙に色が違う。比べると銀の方が少しだけ茶色い、これは銀が酸化するためだと呂色職人は教えてくれた。私の色の好みは錫の方だった。

輪島塗のフリーカップの漆塗りの色については、特に何色にしようという構想はなく、人肌の感触にすることだけが決まっていて、その人肌の感触をつくる上で色が決まるのであれば、その色でよかった。

カップの漆塗りの打合せになると、とにかく私は人肌の感触にすることが第一で、色に関しては二の次だと呂色職人と塗師の方に再度はっきりと伝えた。ここがブレるときちんと見本ができて来ないだろうと思ったから。呂色職人の方は私よりもたぶん10歳位は年上の方だが、
「私の肌と若い人の肌は違うからな、若い人の潤いのある肌を参考にしないと」
と言いながら、塗りの艶はどうしますか、と私にきいてきた。
私「艶も人肌の感触を出すための大事な要素だと思うので、人肌の感触を出すことを優先して、艶はあっても無くてもいいです」と伝えた。

とにかく、人肌の感触を出すためには呂色職人の伝統技術に裏打ちされた技にかかっているので、呂色職人が迷わないように、この打合せで私は交通整理に徹していた。だから、色にはこだわりがないが、色が意味性を持つのも嫌だったし、カップなので中に入れる飲み物が不味そうに見える色は避けたかったので、無彩色、これならば意味性も特に無いだろうし、飲み物を入れるのに無難な色だと思い、黒、白、それと先程の焼き錫の三色を指定し、この三色で石目乾漆の技法を元に人肌の感触をつくり出した漆塗りの見本を制作してもらうことになった。

ここまで輪島の塗師の方、椀木地職人、朴(ほう)木地職人、呂色職人の方は親身になって、私が考えたことがどうやったら実現できるのかを真剣に考えてくれました。本当に感謝の言葉しかありません。

漆塗りの見本ができ上がったら東京に送ってもらうことになり、それで木地と見本を見ながら、再度どうするかを考えて、必要ならば再度来輪する予定。見本が送られて来るのが本当に楽しみでしょうがない。

"Leverage traditional techniques"

In the workshop of Lu color craftsman, I could see the finest products and products of stone-eyed lacquer and various lacquer coatings under construction.

Although I came to the workshop of Lu color craftworker for the meeting of painting of Wajima coat free cup production, before it goes into the main subject, it is said to be painting or a story like the possibility of Wajima coat, applying Wajima coat to a fountain pen, Other than that I got the lacquerware in the middle of the lacquer and the free cup just before completion of production.

Among them, this seems to be produced by Lu color craftsman for myself, but paint the lacquer of the color of your choice on your board of size 1 size yourself as you like, as you like against it Writing a picture and passing it to a lacquer craftworker or a deposit craftworker (image one) was good, in addition to the delicacy and precision of the picture, the design process of the picture was not old-fashioned, it was wonderful contemporary. Wajima coat seemed to see the depth and bottom power of Wajima coat for high quality and cultural awareness of each craftworker and curiosity, although all processes are division of labor and each process has specialized craftsmen.

The only regret is that these craftsmen have no successor. There is no place to make use of these techniques. In order to nurture the successor, we need to create a place to make use of that technology, and to do so we have to bring in an unreasonable task to take full advantage of the craftsmen's skills, and that alone means that the absolute number of jobs Because it may be few, people who make the utmost use of craftsmanship technology are needed with a courage to do this with modern sense, this is not a company or organization, not a person. There is a word "kind calls a friend", but the origin of "kind" or "gathering" is a person, a company or organization naturally has interests, he / she will hesitate to bring unreasonable tasks to craftsmen When a person gathers into a person bringing in an impossible task, you can call friends, gain empathy, spread the circle, and have a place to make full use of craftsmanship techniques.

Although I visited a shop that makes lacquerware with modern sense in Wajima, I do not make full use of the technique of Wajima's craftsmen, and there are things that made full use of craftsmanship techniques when visiting long-established stores, but old-fashioned. Although it can be said to traditional crafts other than lacquer ware, successors do not grow up because there is no business that makes use of traditional technology as an industry, so there are people who are not satisfied with industry as advertisements and branding are insufficient But, as there is no one who knows what to create just because it is not accepted what you are making.

There is a silver lacquered lacquer (thing of the image) which Lu color artisan made for myself, and the painter who went with it also saw at a glance and said that "This is not good", and I favorite. When I heard the Lu color craftsman, the silver color seems to be tin, I baked tin to make it a color powder, and when I use tin without baking it seems to smell. Besides, if you have chopsticks (image one) that painted the tin and silver lacquer, it is slightly different in color between tin and silver. Lu color artisan taught that silver is a little brown in comparison, this is because silver oxidizes. My preference for color was towards Tin.

Regarding the lacquered color of Wajima-covered free cup, there is no specific idea of ​​what color it is made, only what to make it to the human skin is decided and if the color is decided in order to create the feel of the human skin It was good with that color.

Anyway, I got to tell Lu color craftsman and painter again that color was about to be secondary in terms of making the feel of human skin the first time when it was a lacquering meeting for cups. Because I thought that a sample would not come out properly when this was brought down. Lu color craftsman is probably older as I am about 10 years old than me,
"My skin and the skin of young people are different, I have to refer to the skin with young people 's moisture"
While saying that, I asked me what to do with the gloss of the paint.
"I think that gloss is also an important element for giving the feel of human skin, so it is good to give a feel of human skin, gloss may or may not exist."

Anyway, in order to bring out the feel of human skin, it depends on the technique backed up by the traditional technique of Lu color craftsman, so Lu color craftworker did not get lost, I was thoroughly handling traffic control at this meeting. So, although there is no particular attention to the color, I also disliked the color to have meaning, because it was a cup, I wanted to avoid the color that the drink put in would look unfavorable, achromatic, in this case semantic Also, I thought that it was a safe color to put in drinks, I specified the three colors of black, white, and the above-mentioned grilled tin, and based on the technique of the stone eye dry lacquer in these three colors the feel of human skin It was decided to have a lacquered painting sample produced.

Have you been a Wakajima painter, a bowl of woodland craftworker, a craftsman of Park, a craftsman, Lu color craftsman so far, seriously think about how I can realize what I thought It was. I really only have words of gratitude.

When the sample of lacquer finish is finished it will be sent to Tokyo, so while watching the wood and swatches, I will think about what to do again and plan to come back if necessary. It is really fun to be able to send a sample.