New Japanese Modality

Investigation on Traditional Japanese Modalities

Fig.1: Japanese modality,Kikusui-mark, embroidered on Kimono

Fig.2: Octopus 2010- a painting hiring the design from kikusui-mark

The word, "Japanese modality" here, is very similar to "family crest" in UK. We have more than 5000 traditional modalities and they are still often used on textiles (fig.1) just like tartan designs in UK. I have been wondering why Japanese people prefer to extract the characteristic features out of the natural existences (e.g. followers, birds, snow etc. / 雪月花など) and convert them into symbolic images. To print on textiles? -- Possibly.

My Octopus is a challenge to re-present an ordinary dairy things (in this case, octopus) to an unordinaly way.

This painting was a trial whether if I can create a new Japanese modality.

Octopus - Why I was inspired

Octopus
2010

1167 cm x 910 cm

Mineral pigment, gelatin glue, metal leaf on Japanese paper

About Motif - Why I was Inspired

This motif attracted me because of the rhythms: The repetition of oval suckers coils on itself. My first impression on this octopus is shutting himself into his deep thought. The birds sleep in similar pose but they look much comfortable.

About My Own Work

I want to be a painter who is allowed to paint on the ceiling of Japanese temples. To be so, I need to love all lives on the earth like a priest, but it is very difficult. Some Creatures seem not being designed to be happy, and it makes me feel very sad. Being unable to find the goodness about something is my fault.

The secret of beauty seems exist in the details. and I usually start my works from the detailed sketches. In the next stage, I do not hesitate using a photocopy machine: I enlarge the sketched images to fit to my tablets..., but I usually accept printed outcomes as they are, and trace important contours only.

Normally, when the Japanese painter use metallic leaves, they use leaves for decorating the back ground, but I rather use leaves for describing motives (and use paints for the background or simply as metier). I admit my usage of metallic leaves are not suitable for painting, since some more details will be lost again at this stage.

I have been wondering why I want to ruin my original efforts through these processes. But, now I feel like I'm trying to experience something my motifs seemed to be gone through by doing these. I'm glad when I find some good things in the completed painting; because it makes me feel like I could heighten the existence of the motifs I concerned, and there are some my efforts still remained without being deprived.

What I Learnt from This Painting

I had a necessity to keep the weight of this painting light because I needed to ship it to abroad. Therefore, I used flat boards in the beginning. However, the winter air in London was very dry and the 4mm thickness panels were curved! I had to back up the panels by some crosspieces later. If I could predict this problem in advance, I would made regular panels from the beginning which would allow me to cover the side of panels by paper (for better looking).

As was pointed out at the last crit, I noticed the format, 4 split screens, rather interrupting the rhythm of repeated suckers. Now I realize the old screen paintings look successful with more than two motifs, or making use of blank spaces(fig.2). I probably made mistake in the usage of sequence in this format. At least, the octopus's repeated circular rhythm is not working efficiently. Therefore, I should rather emphasize on horizontal contours to improve the painting. I will probably push the left end of octopus body out side so that the horizontal continuity will become competitive enough to physical vertical lines.

I'm happy with the sense of fragility and in completeness about this octopus painting.

New Contemporary: Doodle on A National Treasure

Doodles on National Treasure
-An Innovation on Scroll Paining Format & Its Analogue Player-

Proposed on 14th February, 2010
Attn: New Contemporary

Proposed by Naomi Uchida
Student at MA Fine Art course
Camberwell Collage of Arts, University of the Arts London


Introduction

The feature of scroll painting is similar to our past-present-future sequences in some ways. If we suppose the area we are seeing is the present, the time travels by unrolling the future on the left side while the past scrolls up the right side. In this project, I’m planning to make a “roll-playing” game in which the “out of sight” areas take some important role. The maize will be painted the delicately hand copied Japanese national treasures, Chojyu-Jinbutsu-Giga.

Ruining (Enhancing) tradition with my doodles (contemporary drawings) is the main purpose of this project— this does not mean any denial, neither in tradition or in contemporary, at all: As a matter of fact, “handmade”, “manual control” and “attendance of audiences” are essential to this project while the technology is highly advanced in our time. I will be greatly happy if the players enjoy the warmth of handmade products and much direct manipulation feeling of analogue games. All game players will have the honour to sign their name on this new attempt at where they achieved. The completed scroll painting will be placed in the wood box named “Game Winding Machine” especially designed for this painting which is designed by Japanese (me!).


Specification : Revision Number 00 as of 14th Feb. 2010

Specification of Handy Game Winding Machine – or “Doodle Player” as of 14th
February, 2010 by Naomi Uchida
a = 270mm, a’= 310mm, b=450mm, c=150mm
Gross Weight: 5 kgs

A winding handle and a cylinder View from the top

How to Play

Following instruction and game sheet will be provided to the players (voluntary audiences) before the game.

Followings are photos from the current test version (7cmx800cm):

Japanese scroll paintings progress from right to left.
You will come across diverging points shown as above during the game
Please select just one track with no reason.
Each scene may or may not suggest you the right track

Example 1: a murder case…?

Example 2: a religious cult…?

All game players will have the honour to sign their name on this new attempt painting at where they achieved! (Again, above 4 pictures are the photos from the current test version.)




The hand copies for the final version are getting ready. They are now just waiting for good doodles. Both painting and winding machine are ready by the end of March, 2010.


Sample doodles







Reference For Further Understanding

===Reference For Further Understanding===
I'm reructant to provide Wkikipedia URL which is sometimes regarded as non-academic source. However, this is the most detailed information in English about Chojyu-Jinbutsu-Giga. I hope my trial on this doodle project will contribute for gaining more attantion for Japanese national treasure...!

Japanese National Treasure. Choju-Jinbutsu-giga. Wikipedia [Online Information] http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%B3%A5%E7%8D%A3%E4%BA%BA%E7%89%A9%E6%88%AF%E7%94%BB [Accessed on 14 th February, 2010]

Size of Bricks

Size of Brick
Standard Metric
==========================
United States 203 x 102 x 57 mm
The United Kingdome 215 x 102.5 x 65 mm
South Africa 222 x 106 x 74 mm
Australia 230 x 110 x 76 mm
Russia 250 x 120 x 65 mm
==========================

Bricks are standardized components for architecture. They are well-known daily material in Western countries. The sizes of brick are slightly different by countries but they have been always kept small so that masons could handle them easily.

My Favorite Painting

Hope 1886
By George Frederic Watts
Collection Tate
[Online image]
[Accessed on 2nd of February, 2010]


When we met in September, I asked Donna, Ourania and Kimathi about the following questions:

Question #1: If there is no one sees your art, do you think you will still create things?
Question #2: If you are the only person on the planet, do you think you will still create things?
=====================================================


Donna answered that she will keep created things for herself for both cases though she feels sad.


Ourania smiled and answered that she will definitely continue her sculptures. Even if there is no one on the earth, she doesn’t mind. She said she can enjoy such freedom (with chips and beer).


Kimathi’s Answer: “Oh, if there is no one on the earth, I rather want to kill myself. I can’t even imagine such world.”


Somehow, no one asked me back for the answer, but my answers are follows:


My Answer for Q1: No. I don’t paint if there is no audience. I would rather like to do something else which makes me feel close to other people.


My Answer for Q2: Yes, I will paint as a distraction to cope with loneliness however; I will do other things as well such as keeping a diary or playing some music.


I have my most favorite painting in U.K. That is one of the reasons why I decided to study in London. It is Hope (1886) by George Frederic Watts. The painting visited Japan when I was 19 years old and I bought a poster of this painting at that special exhibition in 1989. The poster traveled with me many places; first, Wyoming (USA), then back to my parents house, 2 or 3 small apartments afterwards. I didn’t bring the poster to London because there is an original in Tate Britain. However, when we had the first visit Tate Britain in September, Lindy seen me gazing at this painting for long time and she presented me its postcard. (That was the first time Lindy proved her amazing insight power!) My impressions about this painting have been changing as time goes on but there is no other painting which I kept always by my side. It may sound funny but I feel like this painting is the place I can go back whenever I get lost (may be for any event…). Have I ever got this sort of hope before? –Probably yes, but it’s always go away in a few seconds. What kind of hope is this actually? –I don’t know the name of that hope. Why do I feel strong empathy to this painting then? –I really don’t know but it seized me at a glance when I saw it first time when I was 19 years old.

The painting matched my feeling of those days and I can’t eliminate that experiences anymore.

The above Question 2 is the questions popped out from this painting image. The answers from 3 artists were totally different but refracted the artist characteristic. May be everyone has their own reason for creation.