Lacquer ware

Lacquerware are objects decoratively covered with lacquer. Lacquerware includes small or large containers, tableware, a variety of small objects carried by people, and larger objects such as furniture and even coffins painted with lacquer. Before lacquering, the surface is sometimes painted with pictures, inlaid with shell and other materials, or carved. The lacquer can be dusted with gold or silver and given further decorative treatments.

East Asian countries have long traditions of lacquer work, going back several thousand years in the cases of China, Japan and Korea. The best known lacquer, an urushiol-based lacquer common in East Asia, is derived from the dried sap of ''Toxicodendron vernicifluum''. Other types of lacquers are processed from a variety of plants and insects. The traditions of lacquer work in Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Americas are also ancient and originated independently. True lacquer is not made outside Asia, but some imitations, such as Japanning in Europe, or parallel techniques, are often loosely referred to a "lacquer."

East Asia

The oldest lacquer tree found is from the Jōmon period in Japan, 12600 years ago. Various prehistoric lacquerwares have been unearthed in China dating back to the Neolithic period and objects with lacquer coating found in Japan dating to the early Jōmon period. The earliest known lacquerware was thought to be a red wooden bowl, which was unearthed at a Hemudu culture (c. 5th millennium BC) site in Zhejiang, China.
However, older lacquerware, burial ornaments which were created in 7th millennium century B.C., were unearthed at the Kakinoshima site in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan.

Chinese lacquerware

During the Shang dynasty (ca. 1600–1046 BC) of China, sophisticated lacquer process techniques developed became a highly artistic craft.

During the Eastern Zhou period (771–256 BC), lacquerware began appearing in large quantity. This is the earliest era from which notable quantities of lacquerware have survived.

At the time of the Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD), special administrations were established to organize and divide labor for the expanding lacquer production in China.
Elaborate incised decorations were used in lacquerware during the Han dynasty.

In the Tang dynasty (618–907), Chinese lacquerware saw a new style marked by the use of sheets of gold or silver made in various shapes, such as birds, animals, and flowers. The cut-outs were affixed onto the surface of the lacquerware, after which new layers of lacquer were applied, dried, and then ground away, so the surface could be polished to reveal the golden or silvery patterns beneath. This was done by a technique known as ''pingtuo''. Such techniques were time-consuming and costly, but these lacquerware were considered highly refined. It was also the period when the earliest practice of carving lacquerware began.

The art of inlaid gold, silver, and mother-of-pearl continued from the Tang into the Song dynasty (960–1279). Several existing decorative techniques gradually developed further after the 10th century, such as ''diaoqi'' (carved lacquer) which involves building up layers comprising thinly-applied coats of lacquer and carving it into a three-dimensional design; ''qiangjin'' (engraved gold) in which fine lines are incised, an adhesive of lacquer is applied, and gold foil or powder is pressed into the grooves; and ''diaotian'' or ''tianqi'' (filled-in) in which the lacquer is inlaid with lacquer of another color. A variation of ''diaotian'' or ''tianqi'' is known as ''moxian'' (polish-reveal) in which a design is built up with lacquer in certain areas, the remaining areas are filled with lacquer of a different color, and the entire surface is polished down. Especially the art of inlaying lacquer with mother-of-pearl was intensively developed during the Song dynasty. However, during the Song, the artistic craft also made use of inlaid gold in a process of which is to engrave intricate patterns in the lacquer surface and to fill the intaglio with gold powder.

The knowledge of the Chinese methods of the lacquer process spread from China during the Han, Tang and Song dynasties, eventually it was introduced to Korea, Japan. In Japan, the art of lacquerware-making came along with Buddhism and other cultural artifacts from China via the Korean Peninsula during the 8th century, and carved lacquerware came to Japan from Ming dynasty China during the 14th century. One of the earliest Japanese techniques for decorating the lacquer surface was, besides painting simple designs, the gold and silver foil inlay of the Nara period (710–784). This technique was transmitted from China during the Tang dynasty.

Coromandel lacquer is a Chinese export type, so called because it was shipped to European markets via the Coromandel coast of India.

File:Red lacquered bowl from the Hemudu culture(Neolithic) in Zhejiang Museum.JPG, Red lacquer wood bowl from the Chinese Hemudu culture dated to 4000–5000 BC, the oldest such piece ever found.
File:Lacquer painting from Ch'u State.jpg, A lacquerware painting from the Jingmen Tomb () of the State of Chu (704–223 BC), depicting men wearing precursors to ''Hanfu'' (i.e. traditional silk dress) and riding in a two-horsed chariot
File:Kunming Oct 2007 044.jpg, Lacquerware in the shape of a man's head, Western Han (202 BC – 9 AD), Yunnan Provincial Museum, Kunming
File:Lidded Cosmetic Box (Lian) with Scrolling Clouds and Supernatural Creatures LACMA AC1997.50.1.1-.2.jpg, Lidded cosmetic box, Western Han dynasty, about 100 BC – 25 AD
File:Mawangdui Han Lacquerware (10112520884).jpg, Lacquerware pot from Mawangdui Tomb.
File:Lacquer from han dynasty mawangdui.jpg, Lacquerware flanged drinking vessels and plates from the Mawangdui Tomb.
File:Painted Iacquer dish unearthed from the tomb of Zhuran 01 2012-05.JPG, Painted lacquerware dish from the tomb of Zhu Ran (182–249 AD) in Anhui province, showing figures wearing ''Hanfu'', Eastern Wu period
File:WLA haa Table Yuan Dynasty.jpg, A lacquered table of the Yuan dynasty, 14th century, with an inlaid mother-of-pearl decoration of a tree
File:Rectangular Box (Changfang He) with Sword-Pommel Pattern LACMA M.84.121.1a-b.jpg, Carved lacquer box with the "Sword-Pommel Pattern", Yuan dynasty (1279–1368)
File:Box with two phoenix birds and chrysanthemums, China, Ming dynasty, Yongle period, 1403-1424 AD, lacquer - Östasiatiska museet, Stockholm - DSC09540.JPG, Box, Ming dynasty, Yongle era (1403–1424)
File:Stemmed Cup (Gaozu Bei) with Sword-Pommel Pattern LACMA M.79.89.1.jpg, Carved lacquer stem cup with the "Sword-Pommel Pattern", mid-Ming dynasty
File:Square Dish (Die) with Figure on Horse LACMA M.39.2.569.1.jpg, Square dish, Qing dynasty, Kangxi era (1662–1722)
File:Cup with a poem composed by the Emperor Qianlong, China, Qing dynasty, 1736-1795, wood base, red and green lacquer - Royal Ontario Museum - DSC03964.JPG, Carved lacquer cup with a poem composed by the Qianlong Emperor (1735–1796), Qing dynasty
File:Qing Lacquered Box.jpg, Qing dynasty Lacquered Box
File:Qing Lacquered Box - 1.jpg, Qing dynasty Lacquered Box

Japanese lacquerware

Lacquerware is referred to by the Sinitic compound ''shikki'' (漆器) in Japanese. The native term for lacquer is ''urushi'' (漆), source of the English hybrid word "urushiol". Etymologically, ''urushi'' may be related to the words ''uruwashii'' ("beautiful") or ''uruoi'' ("watered", "profitable", "favored"), due speculatively to their value or shiny appearance, or perhaps the humidifying rooms used in production of lacquered wares. The term "Japanning" in the 17th century is a term for the technique used by Europe to emulate Asian lacquer, derived from the then famous Japanese lacquer.

The general characteristic of Japanese lacquerware is the widespread use of various ''Maki-e'' techniques compared to other countries. As a result, there are many works in which relatively vivid gold and silver patterns and pictures shine on the black base of lacquerware, and the entire lacquerware is covered with shiny gold and silver grains.

History and regional production

Primitive lacquer was used in Japan as early as 12,600 BC, during the Jōmon period.1万2千年前のウルシ木片 世界最古、福井で出土
The Nikkei, November 6, 2011

Lacquer was used in Japan as early as 7000 BCE, during the Jōmon period. Evidence for the earliest lacquerware was discovered at the Kakinoshima "B" Excavation Site in Hokkaido. These objects were discovered in a pit grave dating from the first half of the Initial Jōmon period (approx. 9,000 years ago)Kakinoshima Excavation Site
Hokkaido Government Japanese lacquering technology may have been invented by the Jōmon. They learned to refine ''urushi'' (poison oak sap) – the process taking several months. Iron oxide (colcothar) and cinnabar (mercury sulfide) were used for producing red lacquer.Jomon crafts and what they were for
heritageofjapan.wordpress.com Lacquer was used both on pottery, and on different types of wooden items. In some cases, burial clothes for the dead were also lacquered. Many lacquered objects have turned up during the Early Jōmon period; this indicates that this was an established part of Jōmon culture. Experts are divided on whether Jōmon lacquer was derived from Chinese techniques, or invented independently. For example, Mark Hudson believes that “Jomon lacquer technology was developed independently in Japan rather than being introduced from China as once believed”.

During the Asuka and Nara periods, between the 7th and 8th centuries, Chinese lacquer art forms were imported to Japan.

In the Heian period (794-1185), various ''Maki-e'' techniques characteristic of Japanese lacquerware were developed. While the method of drawing designs with a brush by dissolving gold powder in lacquer is a common technique in other countries, the method of drawing designs with lacquer and then sprinkling gold, silver, or copper powder of various sizes and shapes on top to polish them was developed in Japan. This made it possible to make the gold and silver of lacquerware brighter than before.Masayuki Murata. ''明治工芸入門'' p.24. Me no Me, 2017

In the Kamakura period (1185–1333), carved lacquer from the Song Dynasty of China was imported to Japan. However, many Japanese lacquer craftsmen did not adopt the Chinese method of depositing lacquer and then carving it; instead, they created Kamakurabori, a method of carving wood and then coating lacquer.

Japanese lacquerware was abundantly exported to China where the Ming and Qing rulers generally described Japanese lacquerwares as " foreign lacquer " ( yangqi ). Yang Ming, and famous lacquer man Zhejiang, made annotations for A Record of Decoration with Lacquer, ... People of the Ming Dynasty once recorded: “The decoration art with lacquer coated with gold originated (maki-e) from Japan". Yang in the reign of Xuande of the Ming dynasty made a trip to Japan to study Japanese techniques, and a Japanese visited a Chinese imperial workshop in Beijing during the Ming dynasty. It is well documented that the Yongzheng Emperor had a formidable interest in Japanese lacquer, ''yangqi'', and this was reflected in many of the works produced in the Imperial workshops during his reign. In the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1568-1600) also made its way into Colonial Mexico (Manila Galleons) and Europe by Nanban trade. Japanese lacquerware attracted European aristocrats and missionaries from Europe, and western style chests and church furniture were exported in response to their requests.

The Edo period (1603–1868) saw an increase in the focused cultivation of lacquer trees and the development of the techniques used. In the 18th century colored lacquers came into wider use. With the development of economy and culture, the artistic quality of lacquered furniture has improved. Hon'ami Kōetsu and Ogata Kōrin brought the designs of the Rinpa school of painting into lacquerware. After the middle of the Edo period, ''inro'' became popular as men's accessories, and wealthy merchants of the ''chōnin'' class and samurai class collected ''inro'' of high aesthetic value, precisely designed with lacquer.Masayuki Murata. ''明治工芸入門'' p.104. Me no Me, 2017 Yūji Yamashita. ''明治の細密工芸'' p.80. Heibonsha, 2014 Marie Antoinette and Maria Theresa are known collectors of Japanese lacquerware and their collections are now often exhibited in the Louvre and the Palace of Versailles.

In the Meiji period (1868-1912), Richly-decorated lacquerwares in original designs were popular domestically, and even more so with Western buyers during this period of European and American fascination with Japanese art. Shibata Zeshin's lacquer work was especially popular. In addition, lacquerware called ''Shibayama'', which was created in the Edo period, became popular for its showy style, inlaid with gold, silver, shellfish, ivory, coral, tortoise shell and ceramics, and reached its peak during this period. Lacquerware called ''Somada'', which was created in the Edo period and characterized by regular patterns of finely cut seashells, gold leaf and silver leaf, also became popular during this period.Yūji Yamashita. ''明治の細密工芸'' pp.60-61. Heibonsha, 2014 The government took an active interest in the art export market, promoting Japan's lacquers and other decorative arts at a succession of world's fairs. Lacquer from Japanese workshops was recognised as technically superior to what could be produced anywhere else in the world.

Today, the Japanese government has designated excellent lacquer artists as Living National Treasures and is encouraging them to make lacquerware. Lacquerware is produced throughout the Japanese archipelago, with many regional techniques and variations. Besides the very old Kamakura tradition mentioned above (and still alive today), the port town of Wajima provides a good example of regional lacquerware. ''Wajima-nuri'', dating back to the 16th century, is characterized by use of the elm-like Japanese zelkova ('' keyaki'' 欅), powdered earth, and delicate features formed from cloth. (See the Japanese article, 輪島塗. A more complete list of regional lacquer traditions is available in the Japanese article.)

File:Tiered Stand with Designs Alluding to The Tale of Genji.jpg, Tiered Stand with Designs Alluding to '' The Tale of Genji'', by Hon'ami Kōetsu, 17th century
File:Reading Stand with Mount Yoshino.jpg, Reading Stand with Mount Yoshino, Edo period, 18th century
File:Blade and Mounting for a Short Sword (Wakizashi).jpg, Lacquered exterior of ''wakizashi'' Fusamune, Edo period, 18th century
File:'Fuji Tagonoura', 'maki-e' picture by Shibata Zeshin, 1872.jpg, ''Maki-e'' ''Fuji Tagonoura'', by Shibata Zeshin, Meiji period, 1872.
File:Khalili Collection Japanese Meiji Art L160.jpg, ''Maki-e'' Writing-table, by Shirayama Shosai, Meiji period, 19th century, Khalili Collection of Japanese Art
File:松田権六 蒔絵螺鈿有職文飾箱.jpg, by Living National Treasure Gonroku Matsuda, Showa period, 1960

Ryukyuan lacquerware

Ryukyuan lacquerware is one of the chief artistic products of the Ryukyu Islands (today Okinawa Prefecture of Japan); it is quite distinct from the lacquerware found among the surrounding cultures. Nevertheless, Chinese and Japanese influences are present.

Southeast Asia

Burmese lacquerware

''Yun-de'' is lacquerware in Burmese, and the art is called ''Pan yun'' (). The lacquer is the sap tapped from the varnish tree or ''Thitsee'' (''Gluta usitata'', syn. ''Melanorrhoea usitata'') that grows wild in the forests of Myanmar (formerly Burma). It is straw-colored but turns black on exposure to air. When brushed in or coated on, it forms a hard glossy smooth surface resistant to a degree from the effects of exposure to moisture or heat.

History

Bayinnaung's conquest and subjugation in 1555–1562 of Manipur, Bhamo, Zinme (Chiang Mai), Linzin (Lan Xang), and up the Taping and Shweli rivers in the direction of Yunnan brought back large numbers of skilled craftsmen into Burma. It is thought that the finer sort of Burmese lacquerware, called Yun, was introduced during this period by imported artisans belonging to the Yun or Laos Shan tribes of the Chiang Mai region.

Manufacture and design

Lacquer vessels, boxes and trays have a coiled or woven bamboo-strip base often mixed with horsehair. The thitsee may be mixed with ashes or sawdust to form a putty-like substance called ''thayo'' which can be sculpted. The object is coated layer upon layer with thitsee and thayo to make a smooth surface, polished and engraved with intricate designs, commonly using red, green and yellow colors on a red or black background. ''Shwezawa'' is a distinctive form in its use of gold leaf to fill in the designs on a black background.

Palace scenes, scenes from the Jataka tales, and the signs of the Burmese Zodiac are popular designs and some vessels may be encrusted with glass mosaic or semi-precious stones in gold relief. The objects are all handmade and the designs and engraving done free-hand. It may take three to four months to finish a small vessel but perhaps over a year for a larger piece. The finished product is a result of teamwork and not crafted by a single person.

Forms

The most distinctive vessel is probably a rice bowl on a stem with a spired lid for monks called ''hsun ok''. ''Lahpet ok'' is a shallow dish with a lid and has a number of compartments for serving ''lahpet'' (pickled tea) with its various accompaniments. Stackable tiffin carriers fastened with a single handle or ''hsun gyaink'' are usually plain red or black. ''Daunglan'' are low tables for meals and may be simple broad based or have three curved feet in animal or floral designs with a lid. Water carafes or ''yeidagaung'' with a cup doubling as a lid, and vases are also among lacquerware still in use in many monasteries.

Various round boxes with lids, small and large, are known as ''yun-it'' including ones for paan called ''kun-it'' (; betel boxes). ''Yun titta'' are rectangular boxes for storing various articles including ''peisa'' or palm leaf manuscripts when they are called ''sadaik titta''. Pedestal dishes or small trays with a stem with or without a lid are known as ''kalat'' for serving delicacies or offering flowers to royalty or the Buddha. Theatrical troupes and musicians have their lacquerware in costumes, masks, head-dresses, and musical instruments, some of them stored and carried in lacquer trunks. Boxes in the shape of a pumpkin or a bird such as the owl, which is believed to bring luck, or the '' hintha'' (Brahminy duck) are common too. Screens and small polygonal tables are also made for the tourist trade today.

Industry

Bagan is the major centre for the lacquerware industry where the handicraft has been established for nearly two centuries, and still practiced in the traditional manner. Here a government school of lacquerware was founded in the 1920s. Since plastics, porcelain and metal have superseded lacquer in most everyday utensils, it is today manufactured in large workshops mainly for tourists who come to see the ancient temples of Bagan. At the village of Kyaukka near Monywa in the Chindwin valley, however, sturdy lacquer utensils are still produced for everyday use mainly in plain black.

A decline in the number of visitors combined with the cost of resin, which has seen a 40-fold rise in 15 years, has led to the closure of over two-thirds of more than 200 lacquerware workshops in Bagan.

Vietnamese lacquer painting

''Sơn mài'' is a painting technique in Vietnam. It developed from the painters of the Hanoi EBAI in the 1930s and today is counted a national painting style with many famous painters.

In 1924 the Ecole des Beaux Arts was established in Hanoi. This institution was to be the birthplace of the revitalised art of lacquer painting. In 1934 the school opened its lacquer department and it was from here that well known contributors to the art including; Bui Trang Chuoc, Nguyen Van Binh, Nguyen Khang, Nguyen Duc Nung, Nguyen Tien Chung, and Pham Van Don would emerge.

It was the first generation of Vietnamese students of the Indochina School of Fine Art during the 1930s, who elevated the craft of lacquer painting to a truly fine art. Less interested in decor than their craftsmen predecessors, it was also these men who would begin a series of artistic innovations from which craftsmen producing purely utilitarian or decorative pieces would also benefit.

Creating images with crushed eggshell, painting pigment over gold and tin foil and adding sand to lacquer were all techniques developed by those first students. The metallic color lacquerware for which Vietnamese craftsmen are rightly famous, was first developed by artists experimenting with many innovative techniques.

After the reunification, the art of lacquerware was slowly dying out in Vietnam. But since the 1980s, the government has recognized it as a vital cultural and economic force and has encouraged the business community to invest in the craft. As a result, we see a resurgence of lacquerware and a proliferation of lacquerware products from Vietnam.

South Asia

In India the insect lac, or shellac was used since ancient times. Shellac is the secretion of the lac bug (''Tachardia lacca'' Kerr. or ''Laccifer lacca''). It is used for wood finish, lacquerware, skin cosmetic, ornaments, dye for textiles, production of different grades of shellac for surface coating. The Atharvaveda text 1200 BCE – 1000 BCE devotes a chapter to 'lākshā' and it's various uses.

Americas

Barniz de Pasto technique

Barniz de Pasto ( es) is a lacquer-like varnish technique originating in the Pre-Columbian era that is a specialty of Pasto, Colombia. It is made by chewing the resin of the Andean mopa-mopa shrub ('' Elaeagia pastoensis'') into thin layers, and then painting it and applying it to a wood, metal, clay or glass surface using heated stones. Historically, the technique was applied to wooden ''keros'', drinking vessels.

Mexican lacquerware

Known in Mexican Spanish as ''laca'' or ''maque'' (from Japanese ''maki-e''), Mexican lacquer has independent origins from Asian lacquer. In the pre-Hispanic period, a substance from the larvae of aje scale insects and/or oil from the chia seed were mixed with powdered minerals to create protective coatings and decorative designs. During this period, the process was almost always applied to dried gourds, especially to make the cups that Mesoamerican nobility drank chocolate from.

After the Conquest, the Spanish had indigenous craftsmen apply the technique to European style furniture and other items, changing the decorative motifs and color schemes, but the process and materials remained mostly the same. Asian lacquerware and artisans brought by the '' Nao de China'' also had an influence on the style and motifs of colonial Mexican lacquerware. Today, workshops creating lacquerware are limited to Olinalá, Temalacatzingo and Acapetlahuaya in the state of Guerrero, Uruapan and Pátzcuaro in Michoacán and Chiapa de Corzo in Chiapas. The most popular modern lacquerware are small boxes, sometimes known as ''cajitas de Olinalá''.

See also

* Chinese lacquerware table
* Japanning
* Lacquer painting

References

Further reading

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External links

"Lacquerware Stories"
at the Kyoto National Museum.
Museum of Lacquer Art Münster
Museum für Lackkunst in Germany
The Craft and Care of East Asian Lacquer
by Denver Art Museum
Bone, Flesh, Skin: the making of Japanese Lacquer
YouTube video by Getty Museum
Intro to Urushi
YouTube video by Dr.Kenji Toki at FabLabKamakura

essay at the MET Museum
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Chinese inventions
Japanese inventions