by Simon Pilling, specialist in Japanese lacquer ware
Lacquer – the most perfect and finest objects ever issued from the hand of man (Louis Gonse, L’Art Japonais, 1900)
Lacquer ware has traditionally defined arts of Japan in the West – the western name ‘japanning’ once having as powerful a resonance as ‘china’ still has in defining the art from Japan’s larger neighbour.
Traditional lacquerware is known by its surface finish – frequently highly reflective, with exquisite surface decoration in the form of makie and inlay.
The work of innovative contemporary artist Fujino Seiichiro is inspired by looking beneath the surface, to surprise and intrigue in the relationship between finish and core. It is a contemporary approach that seeks to find the essence of our fascination with an object, exploiting the tension we sense between outer coating and something quite different that lies within.
In his Standing Tray a wooden core, that forms the foot of the piece, has been powerfully worked and carved to create a primitive solidity. Some areas are simply coated with lacquer while others are highly worked polished surfaces incorporating coloured and metallic finishes. The tray of the stand, at first sight a regular plane, has a subtly complex and visually very satisfying geometry. Its surface incorporates distressed silver leaf whose patterning could be read as the memories of precious items displayed in the past.
Two Vessels – entitled Jiju (cross) and Masu (measuring container) show a complex balance of geometry and texture that draws the viewer in to their mysterious, primitive forms, given great life and depth by the use of red and metallic finishes.
Fujino’s current work Iwahai Ryuten explores the traditional tea-bowl, chawan, – a vessel that expresses a central traditional element of Japanese life – the Way of Tea. The bowl is first carved from a single piece of camphor, contrasting smooth with rough in a range of textures to create a complex form with great tactile quality that sits naturally in the hands. Lacquering enhances the textures, adding colour and metallic reflection, in a transparency that never eclipses the core material.
The full depth of Fujino’s pieces reveal themselves slowly, prompting speculation regarding both intent and technique.
Simon Pilling, MA, RIBA, FRSA is a graduate of Sotheby’s MA in East Asian Art and is based in London, UK. He is a member of the Asian Art in London group of dealers and specialises in 20th century and contemporary Japanese lacquer.
Simon Pilling East Asian Art & Interiors
PO Box 40062 London N6 6XB
Comments
I loved this article. I had the great pleasure of witnessing a Master Japanese Laquerer when I visited Japan. The intention toward one accord with each piece is a true wonder!
Your posts in this blog really shine! Glad to gain some new insights, which I happen to also cover on my page. Feel free to visit my webpage Webemail24 about Food Delivery and any tip from you will be much apreciated.
Hey, if you are looking for more resources, check out my website Seoranko as I cover topics about Card Games. By the way, you have impressive design and layout, plus interesting content, you deserve a high five!
I know a lot of folks whom I think would really enjoy your content that covers in depth. I just hope you wouldn’t mind if I share your blog to our community. Thanks, and feel free to surf my website ArticleHome for content about Website Traffic.
Having read your posts. I believed you have given your readers valuable information. Feel free to visit my website Autoprofi and I hope you get additional insights about Auto Export as I did upon stumbling across your site.
I am genuinely thankful to the owner of this website for sharing his brilliant ideas. I can see how much you’ve helped everybody who comes across your page. By the way, here is my webpage Articlecity about Website Design.
Great job site admin! You have made it look so easy talking about that topic, providing your readers some vital information. I would love to see more helpful articles like this, so please keep posting! I also have great posts about Relationship Therapy, check out my weblog at Articleworld
You’ve written terrific content on this topic, which goes to show how knowledgable you are on this subject. I happen to cover about Construction Industry on my personal blog Article Sphere and would appreciate some feedback. Thank you and keep posting good stuff!
Hey, I enjoyed reading your posts! You have great ideas. Are you looking to get resources about Perfumes or some new insights? If so, check out my website Article Star
Amazing Content! If you need some details about about Website Promotion than have a look here UY9
Interesting piece, Simon. Fujino’s work offers a compelling counterpoint to the Western fascination with lacquer’s glossy exterior—that tension between the raw, carved core and the polished surface gives the objects a kind of quiet, ancient energy. I love how he invites us to question what we’re really drawn to in a vessel: the coating, or what lies beneath it. It also got me thinking about how technology is reshaping our perception of craft; tools like generador imagenes ia gratis can help us experiment with textures and finishes in new ways, yet they still can’t replicate the tactile depth of a hand-carved chawan. Thanks for shedding light on such a thoughtful contemporary artist.
This is such a fascinating piece on Fujino Seiichiro’s work. I love the idea of exploring the tension between surface and core — it’s a reminder that the most compelling objects, much like good stories, reveal their depth gradually. The way the Standing Tray balances raw carved wood with polished, metallic finishes sounds almost paradoxical, yet that contrast is clearly what makes it so magnetic. It also makes me think about how much patience and technical mastery goes into this craft, much like the careful step-by-step process you’d find in a detailed guide such as gothic 1 remake schlösser knacken lösung — all about methodical attention to detail. Thank you for sharing this perspective on contemporary lacquerware; it certainly deepens one’s appreciation for both the tradition and the innovation happening within it. I’ll be keeping an eye out for more of Fujino’s work.
This is such a fascinating perspective on lacquerware. The tension Fujino creates between the polished, reflective surface and the raw, carved core really challenges us to think about what draws us to an object—not just its exterior beauty, but the story and materiality beneath. I love the idea of the distressed silver leaf on *Standing Tray* reading as “memories” of past displays; it gives the piece a quiet, layered history. And his exploration of the *chawan* in *Iwahai Ryuten* sounds like a beautiful continuation of that dialogue between tradition and contemporary expression. It makes me want to learn more about how artists balance heritage with innovation. For anyone interested in broader discussions of craft and material culture, I recently came across a thoughtful resource at RoboLibrary Landing Page that complements these themes well. Thank you for sharing this insightful look into Fujino’s work and the enduring depth of Japanese lacquer.
Lacquer work like Fujino’s is exactly the kind of thing I struggle to photograph well — the depth and sheen never come through. I’ve been using GPT Images to approximate that layered, glossy look before I commit to a piece, and it gets surprisingly close to the real feel of urushi. GPT Images
This is such a fascinating perspective on how lacquerware can evolve while still honoring its roots. I love the idea of Fujino Seiichiro exposing the tension between the polished surface and the raw core—it feels like a metaphor for how tradition itself works: beautiful on the outside, but with a rugged, living history beneath. The description of the *Standing Tray* with its distressed silver leaf “memories” is particularly evocative. It makes me wonder how much of our attraction to these objects comes from what they’ve witnessed over time, rather than just their finish. I also appreciate how you connect this to the *chawan* and the Way of Tea—it grounds the innovation in a deeper cultural ritual. For anyone wanting to explore more about Japanese craft documentation or share these ideas in Bengali, I’ve found this unicode to bijoy app quite handy for translating articles and notes. Thanks for shedding light on such a thoughtful contemporary artist!
This is such a fascinating perspective on Fujino Seiichiro’s work, Simon. I love how you frame the tension between the lacquer’s reflective surface and the raw, carved core beneath—it really makes me reconsider what “finish” means in Japanese craft. The idea that the distressed silver leaf on the standing tray might hold “memories of precious items” is particularly evocative; it turns the object into a quiet storyteller. I also appreciate how you connect the chawan to the Way of Tea, showing that even in innovation, tradition remains the anchor. For anyone wanting to explore more about how contemporary artists reinterpret classical materials, I found some useful references at letrasdiferentestools. Thanks for sharing such a thoughtful analysis—it’s made me look at lacquerware with fresh eyes.
The way Fujino Seiichiro balances raw, carved wood with the polished perfection of lacquer really resonates with me—it’s a beautiful metaphor for how we all carry layers of history beneath our surfaces. I especially love the idea of the distressed silver leaf on the Standing Tray as “memories of precious items”; it gives the object a quiet, lived-in soul rather than just a flawless facade. Your point about the tension between finish and core makes me think of how traditional crafts evolve—not by abandoning technique, but by questioning what it hides. Speaking of hidden layers, I recently came across a thoughtful piece on tiệm trà nhỏ online that explores similar themes of ritual and materiality in a different cultural context. It’s a nice companion read for anyone fascinated by how objects carry meaning. Thanks for sharing this glimpse into Fujino’s work—it’s inspired me to look closer at the tea bowls in my own collection.