International studio (44.1911)

Japanese Art and Artists of To-day.—VI. Cloisonne Enamels



“WILD DUCKS.” a PAIR OF CLOISONNE PLAQUES (ACTUAL SIZE 2x4 FT.) MADE FOR THE S.S. KUMANO MARU
BY NAMIKAWA SOSUKE (TOKYO)


NAMIKAWA
sosuke’s
MARKS
278

circumstances. The shippo in-
dustry is already suffering a heavy
penalty — at least that class of
ware which depended solely upon
the capricious demand of the
West co existent with ignorance
of the Japanese and their artistic
ideals. Let us take as an illus-
tration the case of Toshima, a
village a few miles from Nagoya.
It is known properly by another
name, that of Shippo Mura, which
means “village of cloisonne
wares,” because directly Kaji
Tsunekichi, a native of the

village, rediscovered the forgotten art of cloisonne
manufacture and started its modern development
the whole village—of a considerable size—turned
its entire attention to this industry, each craftsman
guarding his own secrets and discoveries, until at
one time the inhabitants of Shippo Mura turned
out no less than seventy per cent, of the total
cloisonne enamels produced in Japan. But nearly
all the kilns in Toshima are now idle and their
workshops closed, while the annual output of
Japanese cloisonne has dwindled during the last
six years to less than one-third of what it used to
be. The appearance of the village was almost
unbearable to the writer when he re-visited it
nearly two years ago, and remembered the thriving