YASUHARU MASUKAWA｜TSUGARU NURI

Brand

The beauty of colored lacquer applied over and over again

YASUHARU MASUKAWA

• 2007
• TSUGARU Nuri
• YASUHARU MASUKAWA

History

Making the most of the charm of lacquer, the oldest natural paint

TSUGARU Nuri is a traditional lacquerware craft produced mainly in Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture.

Lacquerware is a handmade product that has been familiar to the Japanese people since ancient times.

In the Edo period , the Hirosaki Clan gathered lacquer craftsmen and built a workshop in the castle.

In the beginning, lacquer was used to decorate the sheaths of samurai swords.

Gradually, they began to make furnishings and ornaments, and actively promoted their work through offerings and gifts to the shogunate and the Imperial Court.

TSUGARU Nuri, in which patterns are created by grinding multiple layers of lacquer on hiba wood, was said to be so first-rate that it was overwhelmingly beautiful and impossible to imitate.

The craft has continued to progress and evolve despite the vagaries of the times, and in 1975 was designated as a national traditional craft.

I was fascinated by Tsugaru-nuri when I participated in a successor training course in 2005.

I then became a craftsman.

After receiving training and becoming independent, I have been active in Aomori while holding exhibitions in Tokyo.

Characteristic

Overflowing with the strength and beauty unique to the north.

TSUGARU Nuri is characterized by its unique colors and patterns.

The lacquer is applied over and over to the Aomori hiba (cypress) wood, and polished with a whetstone over and over again, a process that takes about 50 steps.

The patterns are not drawn on top of the painted surface.

The thicker the layers of colored lacquer, the more massive and robust the piece becomes.

Kara-nuri's speckled pattern catches the eye.

It is a rare technique in which lacquer is applied and polished after pressing with a spatula.

Originally, imports from China were called karamono, meaning luxury goods, hence the name.

Nanako-nuri, with a pattern resembling a fish roe, is created by sowing rape seeds.

It has a chic image like a kimono's komon pattern.

Monshan-nuri is a unique technique in which charcoal powder from rice husks is sprinkled on the black lacquer and polished with a whetstone.

By combining other lacquering techniques, the variations are endless.

For Customers

Please touch the glossy and warm TSUGARU Nuri.

Lacquer, which is applied in layers on a Hiba wood base, takes a long time to dry after being applied, and it takes about one and a half to two months to complete.

TSUGARU Nuri is painted with colored lacquer and polished with a whetstone over and over again to carefully create each piece.

The complex colors and patterns that emerge are unique, and their depth and strength are appealing.

TSUGARU Nuri is as robust as the tenacity of the northern temperament and overflowing with the beauty of the four seasons.

We hope you will take it in your hands and enjoy the real thing.

Producer

Bringing the value of "Japan's hidden talent" to more people

■J Flavor

Bringing smiles to the local community, to the world, and to society.

We, J Flavor, are a craft production group that creates new value by combining the various talents that Japan possesses in terms of tradition, technology, and sensitivity.

We want people all over the world to know the talent that Japan.

Through the value of Japanese products, we aim to create a society where everyone has a smile.