Yakie Pyrography
Details
For this meetup, we will check out an exhibition that showcases Yaki-e.
"’Yaki-e’ refers to works created by pressing heated iron tools—such as a metal stylus or small branding iron—onto paper, silk, or other materials to render images or calligraphy. It may seem hard to believe that one could draw with fire on such flammable surfaces. However, the works featured in this exhibition demonstrate masterful expression—ranging from line drawing and stippling to subtle gradations of tone—reminiscent of ink-wash painting.
In written sources, references to yaki-e can be found from around the late Heian to Kamakura periods, though extant examples date only from the Edo period onward. That the technique was already rare at the time can be inferred from a passage describing it as ’most exceedingly rare’ in the late Edo-period poetry and prose collection Kinkōshū, in the essay ’Yakie-ki’ by Murata Harumi.
With its predominantly brown palette, yaki-e may not appear striking at first glance. Yet the more one contemplates it, the richer and more deeply moving it becomes, holding a quiet, smoldering allure. This spring, we invite you to witness this curious spectacle in shades of brown at the Itabashi Art Museum."(ChatGPT translation) [from the exhibition site]
Location
ITABASHI ART MUSEUM
(https://www.city.itabashi.tokyo.jp/artmuseum/4000002/4001541/4001751.html)
Exhibition to see
Edo in Black: Edo Paintings from Black Perspective
Meeting Time
02:30 PM (14:30)
Meeting Spot
Around the Ticket Gate of Nishi Takashimadaira Station
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nishi-takashimadaira_Station
Admission Fee
¥900
Description of the exhibition (Japanese)
https://www.city.itabashi.tokyo.jp/artmuseum/4000016/4001926/4002014.html
Chat session after the show
As usual, let's have a chat session at the end of the event. When we meet up before the exhibition, let's decide where we go after the show.