Borrowing from the scenery seen beyond,
a world is created through “Shakkei” (borrowed scenery).
Using the “SHAKKEI UCHIWA” round fan,
a piece of scenery is cut out. Then,
what appears is a mysterious world where Edo
and the present intersect. The waves from
“The Great Wave off Kanagawa”
by the ukiyoe artist Hokusai splash against a group
of high-rise buildings, “Otani Oniji III in the Role
of the Servant Edobei” by Sharaku time-slips into modern day,
where airplanes are flying. Hokusai and Sharaku are
widely known for their bold compositions,
and their woodblock prints here are trimmed
to fit on the surface of a fan,
and designated points are boldly
cut out with a laser cutter.
What’s more, a genuine woodblock print,
created with traditional methods, is used.
If an “Edokko”, meaning a person born and
raised in Edo (modern day Tokyo),
saw this novelty, they would surely be astonished.
“SHAKKEI UCHIWA” round fan was created
in collaboration with “Boshu Uchiwa” fans,
a traditional craft from Chiba Prefecture,
and come as a set together with one woodblock print.
One interesting way of usage is to frame
and hang the woodblock print on the wall,
and to decorate the “SHAKKEI UCHIWA” round fan around
the window of the same room, capturing the scenery outside.
In the evening it is fun to combine the “SHAKKEI UCHIWA”
round fan with a light source,
in order to project a shadow picture onto the wall.