The interview presented here as "article", I have saved for some years, thinking about how and where to publish. I think this blog is the best place to do it.
During my second stay of research in Japan (between 2003 and 2004), in Kyoto, thanks to some good friends who are dedicated to the preservation of the martial arts, and founded the Kenkyu-kai Budō Nicchū 日中 武 道研究 会 (or That is, the Association for the Study of Chinese martial arts and Japanese), I was fortunate to meet Ichimura-sensei 市 村 先生, one of the few traditional printer that keeps printing technique of ukiyo-e 浮世 絵, or Japanese prints . The teacher Ichimura, a very attentive and enthusiastic, has a small factory and shop at the bottom of the well known Kennin-ji Temple 建 仁 寺, one step of the legendary geisha district of Gion 祇 园, in Kyoto. After several visits, and spoken extensively on the peculiarities of his work, agreed to give me an interview to serve as a testimony to the precarious state in which there are many manifestations and traditional techniques in Japan today.
This interview took place on February 6, 2004 in the workshop Ichimura-sensei. I greatly appreciate the time I spent, and the passion for their work and the ukiyo-e. ----------------------------------------
" Why were you interested in this profession? At what age did you start?
is a family profession. I started at 15 years old, since my father died and I had to help my grandfather, who also was a printer.
What are the main levels of learning?
There are many differences in the levels of learning depending on the skills of the person, work pressure, the interests of the teacher. These levels of learning are not fixed, also depend on how printers work different houses. Furthermore, these levels of learning are based on the characteristics of the production itself. For example, a learner is given menial jobs, such as commercial productions (envelopes, postcards, etc..). Also, of course, these levels depend on special techniques such as bokashi ぼかし, which corresponds to a higher level, or karazuri 空 折, which is smaller level. For example, the atenashi bokashi 当てなし ぼかし is one of the most difficult techniques (1) .
home is a relatively recently emerged 昭和 Showa 18 (1944) through the interest of my grandfather Ichimura Fusajiro 市 村 房 次郎 for this profession.
Who was your teacher? What house?
The teacher was my grandfather's house, and Sakakibara 榊 原 屋.
Was this a house of Kyoto? Possibly
Kyoto. There are differences between the houses of Kyoto and Edo 江 戸 (2) . Formerly they had so many influences to each other, but have gradually been permeating and, currently, the technique of Kanto 关 东 (3) has a very high impact.
Is your work has been characterized by some special kind of production?
For production levels, perhaps. Print a large quantity of parts. I am known for being very fast in production, because I can print a large number of prints in a very short time.
faces I do not make many productions. That is basically what the people responsible. Never bypass tooling 大 判 Oban (4) . Today, demand is down, but once in special events produced a large number of prints.
What is the current status of the production of prints?
have lost much strength the former publishers, writers and printers. Not much chance of working on this field, and many people leave, as well as boys do not care. Many go to Tokyo, and sometimes this can only work seasonally. Unfortunately has been disappearing from people who know, and knowledge and practice of art has been lost. On the other hand, there are serious problems with the teaching of traditional culture in schools. There are places where we learn and preserve these techniques, even in universities. It's something that has to be learned for years in printing houses, which have also disappeared. Therefore, today the majority did not reach levels of achievement, nor is the domain that is achieved by learning "for real". He that is taught in art schools is very superficial.
There is an association for the protection of the art (5) , formed by those who still maintain. We are about 100 people nationwide, and some do not work exclusively in the ukiyo-e style. Now, keep in mind that this figure includes recorders and printers together ...! In the case of Kyoto, only 40 people who are dedicated to this.
What is the response of young people?
Young people usually prefer simple jobs, and not interested in receiving our teachings, they want to work alone. In addition, most are not interested in this. There are some who are interested, curious, even try to do something, but do not want to go deeper, and do not want to spend years struggling and needed, therefore, not engage in this work. Currently, the youngest person in Kyoto that is dedicated to this and is over 30 years, and I am one of the oldest here.
has no future, it will disappear. Of I consider that it is already disappearing. Mechanization and automation are destroying it. Furthermore, it is also producing for tourists is more commercial and therefore looking for solutions easier, and avoids the more complex jobs and technical skills and time involved that characterized the earlier productions (paradoxically commercial), and are the they just raised the status of this event. In the case of the Ichimura-house and that is my own line, it will disappear when I die, since I have no disciples.
NOTES 1. Bokashi is the technique to achieve the gradation of colors in print; karazuri, watermark technique for relief printing without ink; atenashi bokashi, color gradation without use of record in the block, or plate, printing.
2. Edo, the ancient name of present-day Tokyo.
3. Geographical area of \u200b\u200bthe island of Honshu 本州, where is located the city of Tokyo.
4. Oban print format, approximately 38 x 26 cm.
5. This association has about 25 years of being founded. The exhibitions of its members only make money when they can gather, the last was held in 1998.
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