Ultraviolet canvas by Hikoju-Makie

この作品は漆で描かれている。そして紫外線に当たることによって、この作品は徐々に変化していく。漆は紫外線を浴びる事によって、段々と消滅していくのだ。その性質を良く知る彦十蒔絵の職人たちは、朱漆で細密な血管を描き、それを黒い漆で覆った。紫外線を浴びる事でその黒い漆が透け、繊細に描かれた血管が 徐々に私たちの眼前に現れてくるのである。漆芸家は歴史的にも紫外線による漆の劣化と戦い続けてきた。 この作品は、漆が紫外線に分解されるという性質を逆手にとった新たな漆芸表現の誕生と言える。

This work was painted in urushi, Japanese lacquer, which gradually changes as it is exposed to UV rays. Urushi lacquer vanishes in stages through exposure to UV. Knowing its nature well, HIKOJU MAKIE used urushi lacquer to draw shadows and fine blood vessels underneath them. Exposure to UV makes this superb underpainting gradually appear before our eyes. Urushi artists have a long history of fighting against the deterioration of lacquer caused by UV. This work can be described as the emergence of a new urushi art expression, taking advantage of the fact that urushi lacquer decomposes under UV. The ozone layer continues to deplete little by little and now the amount of UV that falls on the earth is certainly higher than it was a hundred years ago. The ozone layer, which was once destroyed by gases emitted by humans, seems to take a long time to recover. Similar to urushi lacquer, human skin is also damaged by UV. From the standpoint of craftspeople, certain messages can be sent out to our society. What matters is not only the beauty of artworks, but also the need for those of us who are involved in crafts in this era to take on board social issues and how we behave.