Panel Discussion

Grand Prize Winner

NATSUME(MC) ───── My apologies for the long introduction. Let us move straight into the comments on the works. I would like to ask each of our jury members for their comments on the winning works, including the points of evaluation and their personal impressions.

First, the Grand Prize:Edaha – Meguru II– (Wing of Foliage –Circle of Life II–) by Shingo MURAMOTO. I would like to invite Mr Shinichi YAMAMURA to provide his comments.

Shinichi YAMAMURA ───── This Grand Prize-winning work, a kanshitsu (dry lacquer) piece by Mr MURAMOTO, has a rather intriguing name. It is an extraordinary work created by stretching sheets of hemp cloth across a flexible bamboo frame and hardening the resulting curved surfaces with lacquer. The jurors were captivated by it from the very beginning of the assessment. While we have seen some works of this nature before, this piece is remarkably well-composed, and the tension of the polished hemp cloth succeeds brilliantly in expressing a beautiful form. The theme is ‘circulation’ – the concept that a living thing eventually returns to the earth, an eternal repetition. The artist has masterfully utilized tension to stretch cloth, a material with little elasticity, across the flexed bamboo surfaces to create a unique composition. Hardening this with lacquer and finishing it with meticulous polishing is a truly novel expression. It has certainly challenged our perceptions of what lacquer can be in the coming era, and for that, it was evaluated highly. While this competition saw a vast diversity of works from many nations, it is a great pleasure that such a magnificent piece has been presented from within Ishikawa Prefecture. My warmest congratulations.

NATSUME(MC) ───── Thank you, Mr YAMAMURA. As the Grand Prize Winner, Mr MURAMOTO, is present with us today, I would like to introduce him. Please come forward and share your feelings on receiving this award and the thoughts you invested in this work. Congratulations, Mr MURAMOTO.

MURAMOTO ───── Thank you very much. My name is Shingo MURAMOTO. I am deeply honored to receive such a prestigious award.

In truth, I have been working on this series for about 25 years, since I was in my thirties, using the method of fusing bamboo twigs and dry lacquer. In this era of rapid change, I am always creating with the thought of what kind of message lacquer (a natural paint) can convey. I am delighted that my work has been recognized in this way. Thank you.

NATSUME(MC) ───── Thank you, Mr MURAMOTO. Once again, let us have a round of applause for Mr MURAMOTO.