Japan Trends have a little interview with me on the new kokeshi book, thank you so much William!
Manami Okazaki has released a second edition of her boo
k “Kokeshi, from Tohoku with Love”, featuring interviews with 23
kokeshi artisans as well as 200 photos documenting how the unique wooden dolls are made in northeast Japan.
Okazaki, the author of several books about aspects of Japanese culture, from tattoos to
toy cameras, wrote the first edition as a charity project. It sold out in 18 months and now is available again in a new expanded version.
Q. Why did you choose to write about kokeshi?
Manami Okazaki: There are a couple of reasons. When I was interviewing people for a previous book I wrote on
kawaii
culture, many mentioned kokeshi as having the same design sensibilities
as modern cute character design. Designers such as Bukkuro (known for
designing the
Taiko no Tatsujin game) find kokeshi designs inspirational. Traditional types of kokeshi, like a lot of
kawaii
characters, lack any facial expression (famously, Hello Kitty doesn’t
have a mouth), and their simplicity leaves a lot to the imagination.
Since 3/11, the country began to focus on the Tohoku region, and
kokeshi became a kind of mascot for the region. There were exhibitions
at trendy places like Claska and PARCO gallery, events in Koenji, and a
slew of gorgeously designed publications like “Kokeshi Jidai”, which all
instigated a boom in kokeshi culture. I write a lot about
kawaii culture in any case, and kokeshi aligned with the notion of
shibu kawaii (subdued, old school cute).
Last but not least, my grandparents on my mum’s side lived in Onagawa
post-war, and my mum grew up there. I am really grateful I experienced
Japanese rural life there, and have great memories of visiting them. We
also went to Naruko and kokeshi studios when I was a kid, so there is a
sense of nostalgia for me as well. I should also add that my mum’s
childhood home was swept away in the tsunami, and in an instant, many
people died, and the town she grew up in disappeared. When I went up
post-tsunami, the playground I used to play in was lined with coffins.
Nothing in life is permanent, but books leave behind a legacy that
carries on for generations — it is one way to leave behind a culture. It
is not the only way, of course, there is a scholar who did her doctoral
dissertation on kokeshi, and there are also documentaries, but it is
the way I am familiar with.
Q. Why do you think the first print sold out? Why is there a strong interest in kokeshi?
Manami Okazaki: I think there was just a hole in the
market, there are some books which are beautiful, but have little to no
text and, are a decade old, and expensive.
The book is in English, so it is intended for an audience abroad — a
lot of people recognize kokeshi, and like them, but in reality, a lot of
the items that are called “kokeshi” in English are plastic
mass-produced products in the likeness of geishas. If you do a google
image search for kokeshi in English, most of the images are not kokeshi,
but kitschy cartoony toys. I met an owner of a kokeshi shop in Paris
who had never seen a real kokeshi in his life, and was asking where he
can get wholesale quantities!
I think people were curious to know what these well-known dolls
really were. I think there is also a general interest in artisan culture
due to things like the slow life movement, and influential taste-makers
like Kinfolk and Monocle magazine celebrating crafts.
They are imperfect, as they are made by hand, and each one is different. Asides from that, they are very cute!
Q. What do you think the role of kokeshi is for Japan today? As crafts? Design? Toys?
Manami Okazaki: Mainly as interior decoration items
and souvenirs. They started as a kids’ toy, and girls were dressing them
up and carrying them on their back. During the Showa era, adults became
enamored in them, instigating the first “kokeshi boom”. Tadao Watanabe,
a kokeshi artisan in Fukushima told me, “Suddenly, these toys became a
thing for urban intellectuals, and they would take dolls out of kids’
hands!”
They are also connected to tourism — they are a souvenir from the hot
spring villages in Tohoku where they are made, and people would travel
around collecting them. In the Showa era it was “collectors with big
backpacks”. Nowadays it is Shimokitaza type, crafty and designer-y young
females.
Q. What are the challenges facing kokeshi culture today?
Manami Okazaki: Primarily, the lack of successors
and the aging demographic of the current artisans. The apprenticeship is
grueling and lengthy, and there is little financial incentive to become
a kokeshi maker. It is the same for all the artisans in Japan, across
the board.
Q. What are some of the most unusual kokeshi you have encountered? And the most innovative?
Manami Okazaki: Prior to this kokeshi boom, a lot of
young people thought that orthodox kokeshi with their demure
expressions looked a bit creepy. In response, artisans usually make two
types: the very traditional types that are true to their lineage, and
ones that are hyper cute — with hats, in the shape of cats, sitting on
beer barrels, with manga eyes, and so on. Recently, fashion retailer
BEAMS collaborated with kokeshi maker Yasuhiro Satou, using both
artificial blue ink, and indigo, as Japan has a rich heritage of indigo
dying. Blue is never found in traditional kokeshi, so it was dubbed the
“denim head” and they sold an incredible amount!
By and large, they are artisans, not artists though, and their main
interest is in dutifully protecting their heritage. They try and “catch”
new customers by making hyper
kawaii types, in the hope that
these some customers eventually get deeper into kokeshi culture, and go
for the traditional types. This is something I also saw in the kimono
industry as well; the casual, creative styles were seen as a bridge to
the “real thing”.
Q. Have you made any significant changes/additions to this second edition?
Manami Okazaki: Yes. It is a second edition ,though,
not a new book, so please keep this in mind if you have the first
edition. The second edition has all the bells and whistles. It has a
thick, textured hard cover, 100% FCS paper from sustainable sources in
Europe, two times higher grade paper, larger format, 60 more photos, 3
more profiles, sections on how to buy kokeshi, and added information on
Tohoku folklore.
Q. Why did you make the first edition a charity project?
Manami Okazaki: I think it makes sense as kokeshi
are from Tohoku. Post-tsunami, almost everyone I knew was working on
charity projects, and chipping in where they could, from making books to
hosting band gigs and holding charity events. I felt there was a shift
in consciousness amongst young people, and a reassessment about the way
they (over) consumed. I remember around ten years ago, if you told
someone to watch their water consumption, not use so much plastic or
packaging, and whatnot, they would think you were a hippie (I’m
exaggerating, but not by much). I don’t think many mainstream young
people prior to 3/11 had even thought about charity, but everyone I
knew, from fashion houses to underground artists were doing something.
It was a charity book, but mostly I am hoping it inspires people to
visit these charming hot spring villages and to check out Japan’s
artisan crafts. Kokeshi tourism is a really great way to experience
rural Tohoku culture, and see craftsmen at work in their own studios.
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