Refinement of Japanese lacquer

【漆の精製】
漆の木から採取したままの漆は、木屑やごみなどが入っているうえ、質が均一でなく、水分が多すぎます。攪拌機（かくはんき）でかきまぜながら、熱を加えて水分を少なくします。それが漆の精製です。精製することによって、漆の用途は広がります。
木屑やごみをろ過したものを生漆（きうるし）と呼びます。


The lacquer gathering from a lacquered tree are contained some small piece of wood or garbage and quality is not equality with a high water. It add heat and reduce water while stirring it with a stirrer. It is the lacquered refinement. The lacquered use spreads by being refined.
It is called “KIURUSHI” which filtered a small piece of wood and garbage.



I found the movie about refinement of Japanese lacquer from youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiZpDblfRT4

Japanese lacquer tree

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　【漆の木】

漆の木は、日本・朝鮮半島・中国などの東アジア、さらにベトナム・タイ・ミャンマーなどの東南アジアにわたって広く分布しています。
日本では、九州から北海道まで広範囲に成育する落葉樹です。大きいものは、高さ10m、直径30～40cmにも達します。
6月中旬に黄緑色の小さな花を咲かせます。雌花と雄花があり、風や蜂によって受粉し結実します。蜂の巣が、樹木の枝からぶら下がることができるのも、蜂は漆の接着力の強さを知っていたのかもしれません。

[Lacquer tree]

The lacquered tree is distributed over East Asia such as Japan, the Korean Peninsula, China and Southeast Asia such as Vietnam Thailand Myanmar.

In Japan, it is a deciduous tree growing up widely from Kyushu to Hokkaido. The big trees reach 10m in height and 30-40cm in diameter.It makes a yellowish green small flower bloom in the middle of June. There are a female flower and a male flower and that is pollinated by wind and a bee and bear fruit. 

It may be that the bee knew the strength of the lacquered adhesive strength that a hive can hang from the branch of the tree.

About Urushi

【漆とは】
漆とは、漆の木に傷をつけた時、そこから分泌・浸出する樹液のことをいいます。
植物を含む全ての生物には、個体維持の本能があります。漆の木に傷をつけると、その傷口から乳白色の液体（漆）がにじみ出ますが、樹液を掻き採らなければ、傷口をふさぐように、そのうち漆は黒く変色して固まります。人間の血液と同じように、漆もこのようにして樹液を保護するわけです。

樹液の採取は、樹齢10年以上のものを対象として行われます。10年もので1本の木から1年間で200グラム程度採れます。これは汁椀をわずか数個ほど作る量なのです。
商品として精製された日本漆は、非常に貴重で高価なものです。漆掻き職人は、「漆の一滴は血の一滴」とよんで大切に扱います。日本の農山村から漆の木がほとんど消失した現在、日本で使用される漆の大半は中国産となってしまいました。


【About Urushi】

     When you damaged a lacquered tree, the lacquer means secretion, sap leaching out from there.

   The plant have instinct of the individual maintenance. A milky-white liquid (lacquer) oozes out from the wound when you damage a lacquered tree, but the color of the lacquer  changes black soon and hardens to block up the wound if you rake sap and do not adopt it. In the same way as human blood, the lacquer protects sap in this way, too.

    The collection of the sap is carried out trees which is more than ten years old. I can adopt around 200 grams from one tree. This is quantity to make a bowl only approximately several.

    

    It is very valuable, and the Japanese lacquer purified as a product is expensive. The tapping lacquer craftsman calls "the lacquered drop a drop of the blood" and treats it carefully. 


    Lacquered most used in Japan at the present when most of the lacquered trees disappeared from the farming and mountain village of Japan so it becomes from China.


http://www.pref.kagawa.lg.jp/sitsugei/history/urushi.html

About a production process of the lacquer ware

漆工芸品の制作工程に関して

漆というと、値段が高いイメージがあると思いますがどうして高価格になりやすいのか、今まであまり詳しく書いてこなかったので少し漆について書いていこうと思います

まず、漆工芸品の製作には時間と費用が結構かかります。結局のところこれらが高価格になる理由なのですが、ではなぜ時間とコストがかかるのかについて制作工程を書いてみようと思います。

About a production process of the lacquer ware

I think that there is an expensive image about lacquer ware. Why lacquer wares are expensive?

It takes a lot of time making that and lacquer is also high price.

I’m going to write down detail about a production process of the lacquer ware.

Choushitsu

article about urushi

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2014/07/31/arts/lacquerwares-overseas-journey-into-the-arts/#.U946pxG0PiM

Lacquer Culture in Japan

Lacquering in Japan has a very ancient origin.Numerous lacquered items excavated from early "Jomon" sites prove that lacquer culture already existed in Japan by around 7,000 BC.

The introduction of Buddhism in the 6th century brought with it the art of lacquer-ware-making from China, later to be assimilated and transformed into various sophisticated skills unique to 
Japan. 

In 17th century Europe,lacquer objects from Japan, particularly ones with an intense black 
lacquer background and refined gold work, were highly valued. 

The beauty of gold-against-black decoration fascinated Europeans so much that they used the word "japan"when referring to these lacquer works.
Natural lacquer is the sap tapped from lacquer trees, which grow wild in East and Southeast 
Asia. 

The lacquer tree growing in Japan is called "urushi", the purified sap of which is of very high 
quality and suitable for the finest lacquer work.
In this respect natural lacquer far surpasses artificial ones. That's why the instructors and 
students of this traditional art use only natural lacquer at this Institute.

Lacquering and Decoration Techniques 
First, the object to be lacquered, usually made of wood, bamboo,or other materials, is covered 
with hemp cloth to prevent the surface from cracking. 

Next follows the application of raw lacquer mixed with powdered clay to fill and make smooth 
the textile surface and strengthen the object's body. 
Then several lacquer coatings, initially rough and then of increasing fineness,are applied.

After each application, the object is placed in a special cabinet which maintains a 
temperature of 25-30℃ and a relative humidity of 75-80% for the proper hardening of 
the lacquer. 
After each coating has hardened, the surface is polished until it becomes smooth.
A special kind of charcoal is used for this purpose.

For decoration, the lacquered surface is engraved with various types of blades to produce 
aesthetic design, a process where the highest skill is required.
Whether the incised design is left untouched or filled with some kind of material and polished 
depends on the decorating style employed. 

Polishing is the last stage. Raw lacquer for polishing is first applied with a cotton cloth and then rubbed off with "washi"paper.After hardening, the finishing surface is scoured with a special 
polishing wax, which is a mixture of oil and powdered deer horn. 
Through repeated rubbings the lacquered article attains the brilliance and luster peculiar to 
Japanese lacquer ware.


from my school website: http://www.pref.kagawa.lg.jp/sitsugei/history/e01.html