Mastodawn

Japan’s treasured traditional arts face a widening gap between aging masters and too few successors, forcing the country to rethink how it preserves, modernizes and sustains its cultural heritage for the future. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2025/11/19/japan/japans-aging-cultural-heritage-guardians/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #commentary #japan #artists #aging #nationaltreasures #lacquerware #noh #kabuki #teaceremony

Japan’s cultural heritage and its aging guardians

Living national treasures are revered. But without reform, the risk of cultural attrition grows.

The Japan Times

earthling Jul 17, 2025

Pyae Phyo Thet Paing: Resilience Artist, 2024

Ko Tun is a craftsman from Inle Lake in #Myanmar who creates carved traditional #lacquerware. Due to the loss of several limbs, Ko Tun works primarily with his left foot. ‘Ko Tun’s #resilience is not just physical, it is mental and emotional. His story speaks to the importance of purpose and adaptability in overcoming life’s challenges’

@photography
#photography
#disability

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Mike Edwards Mar 25, 2025

My kid noticed this set, and I couldn't believe it. At a high angle, you see the black and gold motif. But if you bend down to kid height, it reveals another pattern hidden in the light, which are inverse images of the phases of the moon, different on each lacquerware plate. Unreal.

#art #japan #lacquerware #urushi #photography

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Mike Edwards Mar 25, 2025

Believe it or not, these aren't even the best lacquerware pieces, although they're amazing—I just wasn't allowed to photograph the choshitsu work in the adjoining room that would blow your mind. Even so, these are so gorgeous it makes my heart hurt.

#art #japan #lacquerware #urushi #photography

Mike Edwards Mar 25, 2025

Lacquer, Wood, and Stone in Kagawa Prefecture

There are tons of craftspeople and artists in and around Takamatsu. We started our day here at the Takamatsu Art Museum, which is winding down a really incredible exhibit on urushi, Japanese lacquerware.

(BTW, if you're ever in Seoul instead, their craft museum has an amazing exhibit on the lacquer process for Korean lacquerware that is not to be missed.)

#art #japan #lacquerware #urushi #photography

Mike_V Feb 16, 2025

Traditional lacquerware this is not.
#lacquerware #Japan

https://spoon-tamago.com/sumire-morino-urushi-snowboard/

Furisode Snowboarder Sumire Morino Creates Urushi Snowboarding Gear for Graduating Thesis

Hailing from rural Aomori in northern Japan, Sumire Morino grew up skiing and snowboarding. She is currently in art school studying traditional Japanese crafts. And so when Morino turned twenty, 2 years ago, she celebrated coming-of-age-day the only way she knew how: hitting the slopes in a traditio

Spoon & Tamago

The Japan Times Nov 30, 2024

Behind Japan’s classic lacquerware is a small but growing number of sap collectors — some of them much younger than previous trends might indicate. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2024/11/30/lifestyle/kozuka-life-lacquerware-sap-tappers-iwate/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #life #lifestyle #lacquerware #iwateprefecture #japanesecrafts

The young sap collectors underpinning Japanese lacquerware

“You can’t cut into the core, so you have to judge the thickness of the bark,” says tapper Shiho Hanadate. “You have to develop a sense for it.”

The Japan Times

Hidden Gems Oct 20, 2024

Admire the enchanting Jar with Scenes of Frolicking Xingxing! This 16th-century Negoro ware showcases the seamless blend of mythology and artistry, featuring whimsical scenes that celebrate ancient lore. What stories do you think this jar whispers?
#ClevelandArt #JapaneseArt #LacquerWare #ArtHistory
https://clevelandart.org/art/1984.8

Jar with Scenes of Frolicking Xingxing | Cleveland Museum of Art

This jar features a design of a monkey-like animal ladling sake into his mouth from a vessel bobbing in waves, along with others trying on sandals and crossing a river. In the 1300s, Chinese literature was a powerful source of inspiration for artistic practice in Japan, and this scene was inspired by the exploits of the mythical <em>xingxing,</em> a beast of ancient Chinese lore for whom people left straw sandals and wine. The xingxing would then recite the names of the ancestors of those who had left them the gifts.

Sabraj Sep 8, 2024

#Best time to visit Sawantwadi
#Konkan
#Lacquerware
#Maharashtra
#Moti Talav
#Must-visit places in Sawantwadi
#Nature
#Sawantwadi
#Sawantwadi attractions
#Sawantwadi Palace
#Travel
#Sindhudurg

Top 10 Must-Visit Attractions in Sawantwadi for Every Tourist

Discover the top 10 must-visit attractions in Sawantwadi, Maharashtra, nestled in the scenic Konkan region. Explore this hidden gem's rich history, stunning architecture, and vibrant culture.
Read More :https://sabraj.com/2024/09/04/top-10-must-visit-attractions-in-sawantwadi/

The Japan Times May 17, 2024

Judging by Craft x Tech's list of internationally acclaimed designers and artists, the show's pieces are sure to be unconventional interpretations of Tohoku’s varied traditional crafts https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2024/05/18/style-design/craft-x-tech-tohoku/ #life #styledesign #design #lacquerware #tohoku

A new initiative rethinks old Tohoku crafts

Described as “collector's items,” the works are being kept under wraps until their debut at a May 24-25 exhibition at Kudan House in Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward.

The Japan Times