by FUJINO Seiichiro (b.1972)
Heisei period, 2018
Coloured lacquers
82 x 73 (h) x 18 cm.
Signed. Signed tomobako
Fujino, a masters graduate in urushi from the Kanazawa College of Art, has for many years explored the essence of the flower through his sculptural work. This piece, his most ambitious to date, epitomises his goal of tying surface characteristics to internal life.
It is a supremely elegant form in which new, delicate and vulnerable life appears to spring from a hidden core of activity. To one side all is calm and beauty – new shoots of red lacquer emerging from the solid black centre. On the reverse is seen more evidence of the life forces at work. Red lacquer and metal foils cover an intense tangle of membranous sheets and tubes – the endoplasmic reticulum of any plant - alluding to the energy of growth and photosynthesis.
Fujino explains:
‘The body of this work is carved from Japanese zelkova wood, while each of the sprouting projections is formed around a core metal rod to ensure strength. The surface finish is achieved using traditional Japanese lacquer techniques which, because of lacquer’s natural translucency, requires more than 30 applications. In my work I am particularly attuned to the transparent qualities of lacquer and how this can be harnessed to give depth of vision into the core material.
A solid body combined with projecting parts came into my mind - the bold and almost sprouting form suggesting a hidden core, but with sufficient transparent depth, combined with the outer surface, to express the essence of a living material.’