Kokeshi
Northern Kyushu, JAPAN2019
This is the name my carpenter aunt would affectionately call the sculptures that I gradually began to populate her wild garden with in the depths of the northern Kyushu mountains.
I have left some in moist crevices in the garden hoping the moss will overcome them, in much the same way moss covers wooden grave posts in cemeteries in Japan. Whilst Kokeshi have been associated with guarding the souls of children, they are now primarily seen as a decorative art form. I wanted to create a group that characterises human individuality whilst celebrating our commonality and oneness with nature.
Without the need for painting human features, I’ve found character in altering the ratios of this very simple geometry: a rectangle on top of a trapezium - in contrast to the traditional Kokeshi that are cylindrical with a round head.
This idea stemmed from a small off-cut that fell one day from cutting a half-lap-dovetail joint for one of the foundation beams of the house we were building. Finding the composition of the off-cut pleasing, I saved it from the firewood box and placed it on the workshop window sill for a couple of weeks. Seeing it everyday, I then composed groups of characters to harmonise with and complement the original piece.
The Kokeshi have been made with cypress and cedar woods, echoing the materials of traditional Japanese dwellings. As with the construction of columns, each character has been sawed, planed and chiselled so that it remains standing in the direction in which it grew. By arranging them in accordance with the north-south orientation in which each tree grew, a harmony and dialogue comes into being that I could not have achieved alone.
Cypress and cedar
Kyushu, Japan
2019
Seats for Deities
Exhibited at The Rowley Gallery, London, UK - March 2023
Please contact gallery directly via link:
https://www.rowleygallery.com/Painting-Emi-Shinmura-5865.aspx
These elongated sculptures follow the theme of building a raised platform for sitting: two legs supporting a seat - an abstraction of and inspired by my work and development of traditional Japanese stools.
Striving for simplicity and pure aesthetics, each one is made from a single piece of timber, avoiding the need for joining. As no actual weight will be applied, balance was found in their legs being able to carry their ‘seats’.
In addition, extending the legs disproportionately lends them character and gravitas, unrestrained by the practical considerations that need to be kept to when making stools for mortals. The structural freedom allows them to elegantly stand, or rest against a wall, and balance their own weight.
Differences in seat size and the natural variations found in the woods used, from dense oaks to light kiri, create a nuanced counterplay. To this end, no varnishes or waxes were used and, where necessary, the legs' curvatures follow the grain to maintain strength - offering a resting place for Deities.
Miso Fermentation Shelves
Berlin, Germany2022
This 20m long structure is to be designed to hold 150 oak barrels used to ferment by the traditional Japanese process. Made for MimiFerments in Berlin who pride themselves in the finest of Japanese fermentation processes.
design: currently
to be built: Autumn 2022
Utsuwa Project 3.0, Japanese teahouse
Berlin, Germany & Osaka, Japan2022
This project is lead by architect Rieko Uchida to showcase Japanese crafts in Germany. The forum will bring together experts in the field of Japanese rooms, craftsmen and craftswomen in Osaka and Berlin, and will provide a forum for free discussion of ideas. The forum will also discuss the presentation of prototypes to coincide with the Osaka-Kansai EXPO in 2025.
EN website: http://project-utsuwa.com/
JP website: https://utsuwa-project.com/index.html
completed: November 2022
