Paperblanks Bookmark Karakusa
The wonderful bookmarks from Paperblanks are every book lover’s dream!
A karakusa is an arabesque design of vines or branches and was a popular motif for creating lacquerware. This style, using gold powder sprinkled onto lacquer, developed during the Heian period and thrived in the Edo period, the era from which this design likely originates.
The most important facts about the Karakusa bookmark from Paperblanks at a glance:
Dimensions: 18.5×4 cm
Color: Black with gold
Material: 600g/m² decorative printed paper
Double-sided designs
Rounded edges
About the design Karakusa:
Original Art: Maki-e tradition lacquerware box
Era: Edo or Meiji Period
Region: Japan
Most countries make a dedicated effort to preserve their cultural legacies, but Japan is a leader in ensuring that traditional forms of art and craft remain not just honoured but widely practiced.
Our Japanese Lacquer Boxes designs feature art that was created centuries ago, as do many Paperblanks journals. What makes this series stand out is that while many techniques celebrated by our journals have been largely relegated to history, the “maki-e” lacquerware tradition adorning these covers still has its adepts.
Maki-e is just one of many Japanese decorative techniques involving the use of lacquer. The name of this method literally means “sprinkled” and refers to the process of applying metallic powders to wood coated with the sap of the lacquer tree. This sap is a highly toxic material requiring extremely careful handling and an inordinate amount of skill – nothing less than you would expect of these devoted Japanese artisans.
It is a marvel how the gloss of the polished lacquered surface and the brilliance of details in metallic colours together create an uncanny sense of depth characterizing each image.
The design that decorates our Karakusa cover comes from the paintwork on a Japanese lacquer box dating from the early 19th century and currently held in a private collection. A “karakusa” is an arabesque design of vines or branches that was a popular motif for creating lacquerware, making it the perfect choice for this cover design.
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