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Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun
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Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/20/2017, 12:23:02

From the collection of Fredric T. Schneider, author of The Art of Japanese Cloisonne Enamel: History, Techniques and Artists, 1600 to the Present.

I love this bead - it seems to show the bag from which spill treasures and other magical accessories of the Seven Lucky Gods of Japanese myth. Which makes it a visual pun - the word for cloisonne in Japanese is "shippo," also the word for Seven Treasures.

The characters for shippo 七宝, the Japanese term for enamels, refer to the Seven Treasures mentioned in Buddhist texts. These treasures include gold, silver, coral, agate, lapis lazuli and various gemstones. Like these precious materials, enamels glow with rich colour. [Victoria & Albert 2015 exhibit blurb]

Note the distinctively Japanese use of twisted wire, in this case representing the twisted silk cord in the bag ties.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Lucky_Gods

Thoughts, anyone? Can anyone name all the various treasures? I recognize the magical hammer and the coral, and presumably the scattered little things are pearls and gemstones.

Meiji, from the golden age of Japanese cloisonne c 1890-1910? Perhaps even earlier?

FS_342_ojime.jpg (35.1 KB)  FS_342_ojime1.JPG (19.2 KB)  

Related link: http://www.schneiderjapanesecloisonne.com/
Modified by beadiste at Thu, Jul 20, 2017, 12:29:59

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More pix
Re: Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/20/2017, 12:23:45

FS342_ojime2.jpg (35.0 KB)  FS342_ojime3.jpg (42.9 KB)  


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Kakuremino - the raincoat of invisibility
Re: More pix -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/20/2017, 16:49:12

Fredric mentioned that the the brown icon with the little twisted wire ties is likely this magical object. Or perhaps the hat of invisibility...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uchide_no_kozuchi

And the little horn with 3 dots seems to be the icon for precious rhino horn.

Quite a bit of imagery for one small bead, yes?



Modified by beadiste at Thu, Jul 20, 2017, 16:52:07

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Another picture: Kakuremino - the raincoat of invisibility
Re: Kakuremino - the raincoat of invisibility -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/21/2017, 08:27:57

Another picture of the third item spilling from the bag - the raincoat.

So it seems we have the magical bag, hat and raincoat of invisibility, hammer, coral branch, rhino horn, and miscellaneous gems and pearls scattered about?

Frederick once upon a time said that the best ojime invite inspection and turning over and over in hand; this example certainly seems to qualify in that respect.

Makes me wonder what the accompanying inro and netsuke looked like - must have been quite a set.

FJJOjime.jpg (15.7 KB)  


Modified by beadiste at Fri, Jul 21, 2017, 09:26:01

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One more
Re: Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/20/2017, 12:24:36

FS342Ojime4.JPG (14.6 KB)  


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This Ojime bead depicts Treasures of the Takaramono:
Re: Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: Frederick II Post Reply
07/21/2017, 03:09:03



Modified by Frederick II at Fri, Jul 21, 2017, 03:10:01

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I liked the part about the hat and cloak of invisibility allowing the wearer to
Re: This Ojime bead depicts Treasures of the Takaramono: -- Frederick II Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/21/2017, 08:31:13

do good deeds while remaining out of sight.



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A technical note on enamel colors and wires
Re: Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/21/2017, 08:51:09

The various different sizes of the wires is notable, as well as the use of flattened twisted wire.

I have yet to find an example of this combined wires technique in Chinese cloisonne prior to the Kuo factory in Taiwan circa the 1970s.

The use of glossy brown enamel is also not something seen in Chinese cloisonne from the likely era of this ojime. Until the Beijing Enamel Company was established in the late 1950s, Chinese cloisonne seems to have relied upon a crushed mixture of rust red and black to simulate brown, usually for branch stems. Gray was likewise a mixture of black and white glass.

I mention this because Japanese cloisonne enamel colors exploded after 1870, when the German glass and ceramics chemist Gottfried Wagner was hired by the government and taught new enamel composition methods. The wall of Namikawa Yasuyuki's atelier, for example, shows what appears to be well over a hundred colors. Fredric Schneider's book states:

"By 1895 Namikawa Sosuke was said to have invented 360 new colors. Likewise, Yasuyuki regularly created as many as twenty different shades of each of the dozens of colors he used; swatch-card examples of these are preserved in the Namikawa Cloisonne Museum of Kyoto. Yasuyuki's daughter describes at length the sleepless nights and severe personal effort he endured to create new colors as late as 1906. The perfection of his enamels was remarked upon by the judges at the 1895 Fourth Domestic Exposition, where they awarded him a first prize and noted his "exquisite colouring" and "flawless surface with no pitting or bubbles, achieved through painstaking study of glazing and firing." Harada, in 1911, singled out Nagoya's Kawade Shibataro for his innovative colors, and a 1912 auction catalog states that Hayashi Kodenji had used over fifty-one different shaes of enamel on one six-inch high incense burner. As a matter of comparison with those achievements, in the mid ninetheenth century, the Sevres porcelain factory produced only about fifty shades of colors."

namikawaWorkshop.JPG (212.6 KB)  


Modified by beadiste at Fri, Jul 21, 2017, 10:25:58

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Those haircuts are so modern!
Re: A technical note on enamel colors and wires -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: Luann Udell Post Reply
07/22/2017, 21:50:39

Luann Udell artist & writer Ancient stories retold in modern artifacts LuannUdell.com

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Haori jackets make a comeback
Re: A technical note on enamel colors and wires -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/24/2017, 08:55:37



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Another way to wear beads - beaded haori himo
Re: Haori jackets make a comeback -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: Rosanna Post Reply
07/26/2017, 11:20:48

Himo is name of the traditional ties used to close the front of the haori (see photo). The ties can be replaced by a beaded strand of about 5-6" length that has hooks on either end to fasten the small loops sewn inside the haori to accommodate the woven himo, which is removable. The image is of a beaded himo on eBay.

I recently purchased two vintage summer-weight silk haori from Japan - they are a steal at $10 each. You can find them on eBay by searching vintage haori. I may string some beads to make himo for both of them, but note that for women, the himo is tied so that the front lapels of the haori close and the himo is not visible. So a beaded himo will serve as a "hidden treasure" if worn this way. In a similar concept, men's haori often have very plain exterior fabric, but gorgeous print or embroidered linings that are only seen by the wearer when donning or doffing the garment. A very Japanese detail!

TiedHimo.jpg (16.4 KB)  BeadHimo.jpg (45.8 KB)  


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Thank you both, Interesting new info to me.Never too old to learn!
Re: Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: karavanserai Post Reply
07/23/2017, 01:29:43

martine

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"I have seen one other of these and I think the dealer valued his at $4000."
Re: Japanese Cloisonne Ojime - A Visual Pun -- beadiste Post Reply Edit Forum Where am I?
Posted by: beadiste Post Reply
07/23/2017, 08:57:07

Comment from the collector.



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