| Koichi
Oikawa --- the artisan who devotes himself to Iwayado tansu |
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I think I was destined to"encounter
with zelkova."I was fascinated with the beautiful grain
of zelkova at the first glance, besides, I found Iwayado tansu
were made the best of the beauty of zelkova. That is why I became
a furniture craftsman at Iwayado.
Iwayado tansu are made of the wood of paulownia or zelkova trees.
The tansu are lacquered and coated with a finish that leaves the
beautiful grain of the wood clearly visible. After finishing coat
of Kijironuri (lacquered thickly several times) and Fukiurusinuri
(rubbed in lacquer), lacquer gets clear. As I mentioned"lacquer
gets clear", that is, zelkova which was lacquered in jet
black in the first process gets gradually transparent in a while,
and wood grains get visible at last. Iwayado's special lacquer technique
on zelkova is amazing. |
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Even though I give the same coat of lacquer, the woodparts
colors of each product look subtly different. In other words, each
of them shows its own individuality.
That is because the original color of zelkova is visible through
lacquer. As zelkova trees get older, their woodcolors generally
get redder or yellowier. Zelkova trees have numerous colors according
to ages, and each tree has its own grain, so we can never have another
same in the world.
I am always particular about the material of iron.
It is hardworking and incredibly tough to beat iron and bulge
it as much. I don't know how much longer I will be able to beat
iron in the rest of my life, however, unacceptable for me except
iron. Iron matches zelkova very well. Especially when iron starts
getting rusty, it gets better…
The zelkova used in a tansu may be 300 to 400 years old. If
left undisturbed, the tree could live another 1000 years. To cut
down a tree means killing it, so I hope that a tansu made of such
wood may last for several hundred years. I always try to make
tansu of top-quality that will endure for generations. That is
my mission in life.
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