During a recent seed planting workshop with guides, volunteers and friends, the Portland Japanese Garden started a year-long journey toward next year’s Art in the Garden Summer 2011 exhibition with conceptual artist and sculptor Hiroshi Sunairi, who launched the worldwide Tree Project with an exhibition in New York in 2009.
Describing this fascinating project, Hiroshi Sunairi says, “The trees that still live from the time of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima are called, Hibaku trees (A-bombed trees). In the winter of 2008, from tree doctor Riki Horiguchi in Hiroshima, I received seeds of Round Leaf Holly, Persimmon, Chinaberry, Firmiana simplex, Japanese Hackberry, Jujube trees that are the second or third generation of Hibaku Trees. I have been giving these seeds to the ones that are interested in planting them both in the US and the world. By sharing these seeds, I would like to share the pleasure of growing plants, especially the plants from Hibaku seeds.”
With the planting of more than two dozen of these Hibaku seeds on a recent afternoon in June, the Garden was honored to become a new branch in Mr. Sunairi’s Tree Project. The plants grown from these seeds will be part of a special exhibition by Mr. Sunairi to held at the Garden in June 2011.
In the photo at the left, Virginia Harmon, Director of Grounds Maintenance, instructs Mrs. Bernice Brown and Garden volunteer Judith Lancefield in how to plant their Hibaku seeds. At age 101, Mrs. Brown made the two-hour trip from McMinnville to participate in this project.
Watch our web site for details of the June 2011 exhibition.
A netsuke is a form of miniature sculpture which developed in Japan over a period of more than three hundred years. Netsuke served both functional and aesthetic purposes. The kimono, the traditional form of Japanese dress, had no pockets. Women would tuck small personal items into their sleeves, but men suspended their tobacco pouches, pipes, purses, or writing implements on a silk cord from their obi (kimono sash). These hanging objects are called sagemono. To stop the cord from slipping through the obi, a small toggle was attached. The toggle is called a netsuke. (The Japanese pronunciation is "nets-keh"). A sliding bead (ojime) was strung on the cord between the netsuke and the sagemono to tighten or loosen the opening of the sagemono. The entire ensemble was then worn, at the waist, and functioned as a sort of removable hip pocket. All three objects (the netsuke, the ojime and the different types of sagemono) were often beautifully decorated with elaborate carving, lacquer work, or inlays of rare and exotic materials, including: wood, ivory, precious metals, shell, coral, and semi-precious stones. All three items developed into highly coveted and collectible art forms.
Aren't all netsuke made from ivory?
No, that is a common fallacy. Only about a half of all netsuke are ivory. Netsuke-shi (netsuke carvers) used materials that were available. Only artists located in Osaka, Kyoto, and Edo (Tokyo) had access to ivory. Artists outside of these population centers primarily used box or cherry wood, which they stained and polished. However, nearly every material imaginable was used, including narwhal (marine ivory), boar's tusk, amber, stag antler, pottery, bamboo, etc.
Are there different styles of netsuke?
Yes, with the most common being the katabori or figural netsuke. There are also sashi or long, thin netsuke, that were thrust through the belt, with the sagemono suspended from the end that protrudes below the obi. Manju netsuke are named after a popular bean paste confection that came in a round, flat shape. Kagamibuta (literally, "mirror lid") are a special type of netsuke with a metal lid and a bowl, usually in wood or ivory. Finally, there are mask netsuke, which are miniature versions of the masks used in Noh and Kyogen plays.
Don't the Japanese own all the great netsuke?
No, in fact many of the great collections are outside of Japan. The Europeans were the first to collect netsuke, which were exported from Japan in great number during the second half of the 19th century. With the Meiji restoration in 1868, western dress was adopted in Japan and netsuke lost their raison d'être. Very large collections were built in England, France, and the United States. Today, many of the best collections are still in Europe and the United States either in private hands or museums.
Are all netsuke signed?
No, there are many great unsigned netsuke. In fact, the netsuke considered by many experts to be the greatest of all is unsigned. It is an 18th century ivory netsuke depicting an Ama (Japanese pearl diving girl) and a squid. Some collectors prefer unsigned works, since they avoid the controversy of whether the work is by a famous artist, or just a copy.
What are the good books on netsuke?
Today there are a wealth of good books, with beautiful illustrations, on netsuke. Two good works for beginners, both by Raymond Bushell, are An Introduction to Netsuke and The Wonderful World of Netsuke. Two volumes, which provide a comprehensive look at netsuke, are Netsuke by Neil K. Davey and Collectors' Netsuke also by Bushell. Raymond Bushell has also adapted the most basic work in Japanese on netsuke, The Netsuke Handbook of Ueda Reikichi. Finally, for those collectors interested in reading signatures, there is Netsuke and Inro Artists and How to Read their Signatures by George Lazarnick.
The practice of writing fine calligraphy is known as Shodo. The "do" means the "way" or the "path"—a suffix that defines the way traditional forms are taught and learned in Japan. In Chinese, this same character (道 tao or dao) represents the philosophy of Daoism, the way of living in harmony with nature, regarded as the guiding principle that unifies all things in the universe. In art as in life, it is the consciously chosen path through the day-to-day struggle that leads to an enlightened existence. Like a garden path, the journey itself is the destination.
Nhien Nguyen, editor of International Examiner, interviews Jiro Yonezawa, the Japanese bamboo basketry artist whose work is featured at the Portland Japanese Garden in November 2008. Mr. Yonezawa discusses his art and experiences working in bamboo:
