Kokeshi workshop

2015-11-06 ezolca

We decided to take part in a kokeshi workshop in Yamagata city. The workshop was located in a shopping centre within a gallery space where there was a large collection of Kokeshi dolls. Many designed by the workshop teacher himself. The workshop consisted of planning the designs on paper first and then later painting with thick inks directly onto the prepared wooden dolls. The calligraphy paintbrushes are difficult tools to control especially if you are used to western paintbrushes. Everything was provided along with ink but to paint a kokeshi doll was a very difficult task, especially when it came to painting on the eyes. The last step was to rub wax onto the doll.

Overall the workshop was great and in a very calm atmosphere, the final dolls were photographed and then wrapped up to take home. In total the worksop lasted around an hour.

Pricing: Kokeshi doll workshop 300 Yen

written by Shana. L

Yamagata traditional Kokeshi museum

seiryugama

2015-10-09 ezolca

Johgi Nyorai Saihoji Temple

2015-10-04 ezolca

Welcome to Johgi Nyorai
Johgi Nyorai Saihoji Temple is a Buddhist temple in Sendai, Japan. Our most sacred treasure is a painted scroll of Amida Buddha which is kept in the main temple pictured above. This holy painting of Amida Buddaha is called Johgi Nyorai because Johgi is the name of this location, and Nyorai means Buddha. This is a secret Buddha, and the center door is opened only five times each year. Johgi Nyorai is believed to bring good luck to those who pray regularly for their family’s happiness such as happy weddings, easy childbirth, health, or success in business. Many people, attracted by Buddha’s miraculous virtues, continually visit here in order to pray. ( From a guide of Johgi Nyorai Saihoji Temple)

KEN DOMON Memorial Hall (From Museums in Yamagata )

2015-09-28 ezolca

This museum displays the work of world famous photographer Ken Domon. Domon’s powerful masterpieces the “Pilgrimage to Old Temples” and “Hiroshima” series, and his other photographs are on view. The work of top artists, such as the beauty of this building that complements the natural surroundings, the gardens, sculptures and the work’s name plates, all combine to create the artistic space in this museum.
(From the guidebook “Museums in Yamagata”)

About Ken Domon (1909 〜 1990)
A photographer, born in Sakata City, Ymagata Prefecture. He is a great master who established the realism in the photographic world. He was in a certain period called a demon for news photographic work and is now well known throughout the world.
” A Pilgrimage through Old Temples”, his lifework, is regarded as the pinnacle among his masterpieces and is followed by the similarly distinguished works, such as “Muroji Temple”, “Hiroshima”, “The Children in Chikuho”, “Bunraku Puppets”, “Features”, “Old Ceramics in Japan”, “Wanderings through Old Kilns”, “Lives of Japanese Master-hands” and many other works. Every work of these is famous respectively as a great monument.
The artistic value of Ken Domon is said to lie in his snappings at the beauties of Japan and minds of the Japanese. His achievements in photography are highly evaluated and he won not only the first Ars Photographic Culture Prize in 1943, but got many excellent prizes. He was decorated in 1972 with a Purple Ribbon Medal, and in 1980 with the Fourth Order of Merit with Minor Cordon of the Rising Sun.
(From a guidebook of Ken Domon Museum of Photography)

Ken Domon Memorial Hall Web

Otaka-Poppo

2015-09-18 ezolca

Situated at the southern tip of Yamagata Prefecture, the City of Yonezawa is most famous for one of its traditional crafts, the Otaka-poppo. These intricate wood carvings in the shape of a hawk are individually handcrafted by artisan woodworkers. The word poppo comes from the Ainu word for “toy.” Otaka, meaning “hawk,” refers to Uesugi Yozan, a famous daimyo of Yonezawa, and symbolizes nobility and splendor. These carvings are imbued with prayers for success in life and the realization of ambition, and thus, they decorate the living rooms and hallways of many homes as talismans of good fortune.

Kabazaiku (birch craft)

2015-09-17 ezolca

Cherry bark ware, liven-up your everyday life
DENSHIRO is brand of Fujiki Denshiro Shoten Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of fine Cherry bark ware. We have been producing Cherry bark ware over six generations since its foundation in 1851. Using selected materials with various appearances, superior skills proven over the 200 years of history, and designs in harmony with today’s living spaces, DENSHIRO collection liven-up your everyday life.

Material
Kabazaiku is made of wild cherry bark. It is an eco-friendly material as it regrows after being peeled off. The origin of the name Kabazaiku comes from a song in Manyoshu. In it the author expressed wild cherry bark as ” kaniha”, which later changed to “kaba”. Kabazaiku has two patterns: the one that brings out the appearance of wild cherry bark is called “Shimofuri” or Marble, the other is called “Muji” or Natural, whose surface is thinly scraped to polish. The surface of tea caddies and other products will acquire shine as you cherish them with your hands on a daily basis. You can enjoy a growing shine of wild cherry bark. ( From a Pamphlet of Fujiki Denshiro Shoten )

Kakunodate Denshiro Web

SABAKO HOT SPRING

2015-08-28 ezolca

In Fukushima Prefecture’s famous onsen town Iizaka, the oldest and most popular of their many public hot springs is Sabako-Yu. Japan’s most famous poet, Matsuo Basho is said to have bathed in it in 1689, and to this day, the spring is enjoyed by locals and tourists alike. Once known as Japan’s oldest wooden public bath, in 1993, it was refurbished using traditional cypress-wood construction. With a source spring of 51°C, the baths are so hot that you may feel as though you’re being cooked!

Keiji Massimo

2015-08-24 ezolca

Keiji Mashimo (1914-1993) was a painter born in Yamagata prefecture who lived until the age of 79. With a painting career spanning 60 years, his works focused almost exclusively on Yamagata’s famed Mogami River. Unfazed by even harsh winter weather or heavy snowfall, he refused to do his painting work anywhere but on the banks of the Mogami River, and it was not unusual for him to paint similar scenes numerous times.

According to Mashimo, “The air and the light are always different, so a landscape is never the same. In this world, there is no such thing as a landscape that remains unchanged.” Flowing over 200 km from its headwaters to the Sea of Japan, the Mogami River is entirely contained within the borders of Yamagata prefecture, and Mashimo traveled from its upper to lower reaches in every season to document the many faces of this beloved river. (Takashi Nakamura )

Keiji Massimo Web

GO-JYU-NO-TO (Five-Storied Pagoda)

2015-08-23 ezolca

It is traditionally said that this five-storied pagoda was built by Taira no Masakado, a famed military commander , between the years 931 and 937. A classic text says that Fujiwara no Ujiie, a court noble, rebuilt the pagoda in 1372. It is a 29 meter high, 5 storied, plain wood building roofed with shingles. It is designated as a national treasure.

Haguro shrine web

The 16 Buddhas

2015-08-21 ezolca

The History of the 16 Buddhas

The 16 Buddhas are carved into the cliffs which run for several hundred meters against the rough waves of the Sea of japan. They were sculpted by Ishikawa Kankai, the 21st priest of the Zen Buddhist Kaizen-ji Temple, between the years of 1864 and 1868. We give thanks for his hard work and devotion in skillfully carving this divine monument of 22 statues into the cliff face.
Having had the idea to carve the statues, the Priest went to Sakata seeking donations to fund the work. When enough money had been raised, he supervised local masons in carving one statue, and continued in this way until the project was complete.
The statues are all busts and are arranged around the figures of Shaka, Monju and Fugen. They were carved to fit in with the shape of the rocks and even complement of the natural beauty of the area. The 16 Buddhas monument reaffirms the faith of all those who come here and is a testimony to the benevolence of the priest who created it.

March 1975
Kaizen-ji Temple
Fukura, Yuza Town.

Shinjo-station

2015-08-14 ezolca

Situated in the north-eastern part of Yamagata Prefecture, Shinjo is a town of 40,000 people known for its tremendous snowfall. During the winter, when the town is transformed into a mountain of snow piled deeper than two meters, the people of Shinjo spend their days shoveling and ploughing. When the harsh winter subsides and spring comes to Shinjo, the citizens celebrate the changing seasons with an event called the Kadoyaki Festival, where they eat Pacific Herring (which they call Kado in their local dialect). In summer, they parade grand festival floats around town to celebrate their Shinjo Festival, which started 260 years ago. In fall, they hold a festival to fly traditional kites. Shinjo Station is the terminal station for the Yamagata Shinkansen, which connects Tokyo and Yamagata, letting more people than ever to bask in the welcoming glow of these festivals. Visitors will delight in seeing the magnificent festival floats or the beautifully decorated kites.

Cherry in Yamagata

2015-07-23 ezolca

Yamagata Prefecture is known for producing Japan’s best cherries. When the fruit ripens in June, cherry farmers start work at the dark hour of 4 a.m. to bring in their harvest. They carefully hand-pick the cherries one at a time and ever-so-gently, place them in bamboo baskets called biku so as not to harm a single one. One by one, the harvested cherries are then carefully sorted by size and color, taken that same day to markets and shops, and displayed as Asatori Sakuranbo, or Morning-Harvest Cherries. The cherries are exceptionally popular across Japan as a gift of early summer.

Yamagata wo Iku (“Going to Yamagata”)

2015-07-21 ezolca

The book Yamagata wo Iku (“Going to Yamagata”), Rediscover Yamagata is not your ordinary guide book.
There are no advertisements or marketing blurbs. In a series of articles, nineteen people with an attachment to the area simply present the things they love about the prefecture. They introduce their area of interest in their own personal way, and these interests span a wide range of categories. Instead of focusing on popular stores or well-known products, they introduce such things as out-of-the-way coffee shops, quiet shrines, undiscovered craftsmen, and old hot spring hotels. This book is a collection of anecdotes and personal narratives about an aspect of Yamagata each writer believes deserves to be known.

This book was created on the occasion of the first Michinoku Art Festival Yamagata Biennale, held in 2014. It was produced as part of the festival preparations with the aim of helping those who would be visiting Yamagata to discover what was special about the prefecture. For readers with a love of art, culture, and design, the article writers hoped to introduce a Yamagata that was deeper and more authentic than the Yamagata found in a typical travel guide. This is a guide book for people interested in discovering Yamagata, written by those who love Yamagata.

text by Mikio Soramame

sagara doll

2015-06-17 ezolca

Sagara dolls have been made by many generations of the Sagara family of Yonezawa city, Yamagata prefecture since 1790. These dolls can take on many forms, but here we have a “Child Holding a Sea Bream.” In Japan, the sea bream is a symbol of prosperity and good fortune, and this particular doll embodies the hope for a child’s good health and future happiness. (Takashi Nakamura)

KOKESHI

2015-06-11 ezolca

Kokeshi dolls are said to have originated around 1800 in the northeastern Tohoku region of Japan, in hot spring districts known for their healing properties. The craftsmen of these densely wooded and mountainous regions fashioned bowls, trays and other household goods out of wood, and the dolls they crafted out of leftover wood scraps are believed to be the first kokeshi dolls. Visitors to the hot springs bought these dolls as souvenirs, contributing to their spread throughout Japan.

See Tohoku, Enjoy Japan.

空豆