Hiroi-sensei and his apprentices participated in many local community events. Below are photos of them selling their top and kokeshi products at Sendai’s Shimin Matsuri, a local festival, in the 1980s.
廣井先生と弟子がよくコミュニティーのエベントに参加していた。以下の写真で、廣井先生たちが80年代の仙台市民まつりで独楽・こけしなどを売っている。
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Hiroi-sensei has appeared many times in Japanese newspapers. Below is a translation of an article entitled “Craft Village Calls for Four Apprentices” that ran November 11, 2012 in the newspaper Kahoku shinpō. See the original Japanese article at the link below.
廣井先生は多数の新聞記事で特集されています。2012年11月11日、河北新報が廣井先生についての記事を掲載しました。以下のリンクでアクセスできます。
Click here for the original article in Japanese.
日本語での記事はこちら。
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Sendai and Akiu Engage in Job Creation Projects
At workshops in “Akiu Craft Village” in Sendai’s Taihaku Ward, four people in their 20s and 30s have become apprentices. In order to address the lack of successors to their crafts, artisans have welcomed and supported the country’s emergency job creation situation.
They also hope to borrow the energy of these young people to revitalize efforts to increase the dwindling number of visitors who come to Akiu Craft Village.
“A Chance to Train a Successor”
Both the Ganguan Kokeshi Store and the Onkomaya Hiroi Edo tops workshop have acquired two apprentices. The Sendai tansu shop Kumandō and tea utensil Umoregi* shop also have taken on apprentices.
Sekino Akiko (age 39, Taihaku Ward), a part-time instructor at an elementary school in Sendai who has become an apprentice at Ganguan, began visiting Akiu Craft Village once or twice during months off starting three years ago. Sekino decided to become an apprentice, saying, “I would like to open a workshop and convey to children how wonderful wooden toys are.”
On the 7th of this month, Sekino began learning to paint. By using kokeshi artisan Suzuki Akira (52)’s models as reference, Sekino is starting to learn how to paint eyebrows, eyes, and noses. Sekino worried, “Starting the brushwork is incredibly difficult”; to which Suzuki responded “Your own feelings are passed through the brush and appear in the work,” communicating the importance of being aware of your own state of mind while working.
Sales are in a slump, and more than half of the 9 shops at the Craft Village have no apprentices. The partnership of artisans, alarmed by this, solicited the apprentices using project assistance from the government that can guarantee at most one year and five months’ wages for them.
“It takes a short while to come into one’s own as an artisan, about a year and a half,” said Hiroi, the head of the project partnership, “but it would be great if we had a chance to train the artisans of the future.”
In addition to taking those who come to Akiu Craft Village on tours, Sekino will be making new kokeshi characters and has an important position in building up interest in the Craft Village.
Dyeing and Weaving Atelier Tsuru is also recruiting apprentices now. People who would like to apply can do so through the job placement office or contact the Association representative at 022 (398) 2770.
*Translator’s note: This is an error. The Umoregi shop sells items crafted from bogwood and the Kobokusha Store sells tea utensils.
Title:
タイトル：椿人形
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椿を表す人形、椿人形の独楽。回すと人形がクルクルと回る。
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廣井道顕：これはあの椿の、これちょんとやると、グルグル回る独楽。
Title:
椿人形 (tsubaki ningyo)
camellia doll
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This top depicts a doll representing a camellia blossom. When turned, it spins around.
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Hiroi Michiaki: This is a camellia, and if you [turn this part] properly, it’s a top that spins about.
Hiroi-sensei has appeared many times in Japanese newspapers. Below is a translation of an article entitled “Looking Forward to the Creation of “Akiu Products” that ran April 20, 2004 in the newspaper Kahoku shinpō. See the original Japanese article at the link below.
廣井先生は多数の新聞記事で特集されています。2004年4月20日、河北新報が廣井先生についての記事を掲載しました。以下のリンクでアクセスできます。
Click here for the original article: 記事はこちら。
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Kahoku shinpō (April 20, 2004)
Looking Forward to the Creation of “Akiu Products”
Steady Work on Making a Forest for Kokeshi
Sendai City/Akiu Craft Village Collaboration
In an attempt to promote the local woodworking industry, Sendai City is embarking on a “kokeshi forest”-making project in the town of Akiu’s Taihaku ward. In collaboration with Akiu Craft Village, painted maple and dogwood saplings will be planted; those trees will become the pulpwood for traditional craft goods. Their aim is to eventually have kokeshi that are entirely made from “Akiu Products,” and to facilitate that, a planting event, for which city residents can volunteer, is planned for May 5 [2004] .
Pulpwood trees to be planted this year, too, on May 5
Dogwood trees are native to the Akiu area, but the region is very marshy, making logging work very difficult. Because of this, Hiroi Michiaki (age 70), an artisan of Akiu Craft Village who makes kokeshi, is supplied with woodchips made by the lumber workers of Miyagi Prefecture’s Kunomori Ward for his work.
However, for a number of years lumber imports have been increasing and the amount of woodchip production has gone down; dogwood preservation, too, is becoming more difficult. Planning the pulpwood through their own supply efforts, Sendai and Akiu began the “kokeshi forest” project in May of last year. The city-owned forests near the Craft Village are roughly 6 hectares, and they plan to plant about 10,000 saplings over the course of 6 years, finishing in 2008. In one year, they have planted 1,400 dogwood trees.
It’s projected it will take roughly 15 to 20 years for the trees to grow into usable materials, but Hiroi-san has said, “If the next generation of artisans is able to use local dogwood to make kokeshi and other goods, I would be happy,” and is watching over the saplings affectionately.
The planting event, sponsored by the joint Sendai and Craft Village project, will be held on the 5th and is recruiting volunteers to help the artisans plant 1,500 saplings in the city-owned forest area. They also plan to hold cultural exchange events, with woodworking workshops and atelier tours.
The Sendai City Agriculture, Forestry, and Public Works Division stated, “Through the collaboration of the artisans and city residents on this forestation project, we hope to assure the continuation of traditional arts and to deepen our residents’ understanding of forestry and woodworking traditions.”
There are 100 volunteer positions available on a first come, first serve basis. To volunteer, contact the Sendai City Agriculture, Forestry, and Public Works Division’s Forestry Branch at 020 (214) 8264.
As a part of building the Akiu Craft Village and its community, artisans working there have each of their homes, workshops, and shops together in one building. In the following photos, we see Hiroi-sensei and Mrs. Hiroi in their shop, “Onkomaya Hiroi,” where they sell their tops, along with some photos of Hiroi-sensei’s work on display. New tops are always appearing in the shop, as Hiroi-sensei and his apprentice design new works, create seasonal tops, and recreate old favorites.
秋保工芸の里と、その里のコミュニティづくりの一部として、働く職人は工芸の里に自宅、工房、兼 販売店舗を一つの建物として所有している。つくった独楽を販売する「御独楽處 廣井」という店舗にいる廣井先生と奥様の写真や、廣井先生が陳列した独楽の写真をここで紹介したい。廣井先生とお弟子さんが新しいデザインをつくり、季節の独楽や、昔ながらのデザインをつくるたび、真新しい独楽が常に店に陳列される。
タイトル：
ミノ虫飛び出しの中の独楽 (minomushi tobidashi no naka no koma)
bagworm larva leaping out top
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蛾の幼虫、ミノ虫がテーマの独楽である。イモムシのときに自分を温めるためのミノを作るので英語では『ケース・モス(case moths/ ケースは入れ物、モスは蛾)』と呼ばれることもある。住んでいる木にある葉を食べるために、ミノ虫がミノから頭を出す。日本で人気があるのは蓑笠の蓑のように見えるミノがある姿である。ミノ虫は俳句の秋の季語として使われることがよくある。この独楽で、廣井先生はミノ虫が木の枝に付いているミノから顔を出す姿を表現している。
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廣井道顕：うんでこれは何だっけな。あぁ、これはあれだ。ミノムシか。ミノムシの、ミノムシのその殻がないんだ。
廣井夫人：うん。
廣井：あのミノムシってぶら下がっててこんなんありますよね、あのう、これから。そういう形の独楽、飛び出してくる独楽。中のミノムシの虫が飛び出る、蝶ネクタイやってね。
Title:
ミノ虫飛び出しの中の独楽 (minomushi tobidashi no naka no koma)
bagworm larva leaping out top
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This top depicts a bagworm larva, the larval stage of the bagworm moth. They are sometimes called “case moths” because their caterpillars build little protective cases in which they gestate. As they emerge, bagworm larva pop their heads out of their case to eat the leaves of the tree they inhabit. In Japan, their popular image is related to the top of their case looking like a straw raincoat. Bagworms are often used as a subject for seasonal haiku in the fall. For this top, Hiroi-sensei depicts a bagworm popping out of its case, which is attached to a tree branch.
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Hiroi Michiaki: And what was this? Ahh, we talked [about this]. The bagworm larva? The bagworm larva doesn’t have a body.
Mrs. Hiroi: Yeah.
Hiroi Michiaki: Bagworm larva dangle [from branches] like this. From here. It’s a top with that sort of shape, one that leaps out. The bagworm inside jumps out, and it’s wearing a bowtie.
ジャネルが弟子入りしている間、廣井氏はジャネルの生まれ育った場所と新しい故郷である日本の芸術・文化を、日本の伝統工芸を通して表現できるようにと、アメリカの民俗文化や伝承をテーマにした独楽も作ってみるよう勧めた。以下の写真は1980年代からジャネルが作った独楽です。こちらの独楽は洋風のテーマも伝統的独楽もある。
While Janell was an apprentice to Hiroi-sensei, he encouraged her to produce tops that dealt with themes related to American folk culture and lore that reflected both her background and the art and culture of her new home through traditional Japanese crafts. The photos below show tops Janell made in the 1980s. There are both western-themed tops and traditional Japanese tops.
Carving Community: 