the term should be limited to raised lacquer done in makie, as the name implies. The technique originated at the end of the Kamakura period (about 1334) and was fully developed under the Ashikaga shogunate in the 15th century. In general, takamakie is used for near perspective, including figures, rocks, and trees. At times it reaches almost a sculptural quality, which of course also applies to high encrustations. As previously mentioned, "raising lacquer," which contains camphor, is used in order to produce slow and even drying. This prevents drying of the top layers first as well as subsequent cracking of the top layer.
The ground may be black or any colored lacquer, or of a lacquer imitating some other material, or nashiji, or plain wood or metal. The design is transferred from paper, as in all makie. A layer of shita-maki-urushi (undercoating lacquer) is applied to the portions to be raised as a basis for the raising process. Two layers of Yoshino-nobe-urushi are applied to the design:
1) For slight relief, taka-maki-urushi (raising lacquer) is used with fine brushes, dried, ground down, polished, and covered with seshime-urushi. The surface is now ready for gilding.
2) For high relief, the design is built up with several coats of sabi (clay and seshime-urushi) which are applied with the usual drying and grinding process and then coated with Yoshino-nobe-urushi. Then the stages listed above under "slight relief" are gone through before the surface is ready for gilding (Frontispiece).
3) In the gilding processes the kirigane is applied first upon a layer of ro-se-urushi, and then hirame or shell scales are applied separately with a pointed stick (hirame-fude). The parts to be gilded with gold dust are now coated with shita-maki-urushi (undercoating lacquer) and the powders applied with the tsutsu. Repeated dustings are done as necessary. The final details of the design are then done as in hiramakie after the application of shita-maki-urushi—namely, clear lacquer, inside line lacquer, dusting, shading lacquer, and finally finishing lacquer.
MISCELLANEOUS MAKIE TYPES
In addition to the three basic makie types described above, there are a number of variations. These are briefly explained here.
1) maki-abise. In this technique, which was used in the Momoyama period, gold dust was heavily heaped onto the raised design.
2) Higashiyama makie. Lacquer ware made in the late Muromachi period for Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa (1435-90).
3) jidai makie. Lacquer products of the Genroku era (1688-1704).
4) jokei-in makie. Lacquer ware of the Genroku era named after an appellation of Shogun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (ruled 1680-1709).
5) joken-in makie. Ornamentation of different regular seedings in gold and silver of different tonalities, often found in picnic boxes (bento-bako) in which each compartment, tray, or sake bottle is decorated with a different geometrical design.
6) Kaga makie. Originated in the mid-17th century by the Igarashi family of lacquer artists, who moved from Kyoto to Kaga Province under the patronage of Lord Maeda Toshitsune.
7) kimetsuhe makie. Makie in relief decorated with patterns in gold or silver flakes. The pieces of cut metal flakes are fixed to the design with starch and therefore stand out in relief. The technique was used during the Momoyama period.
8) Kodai-ji makie. Lacquer work of the Momoyama period named after Hideyoshi's Kodai-ji temple in Kyoto, which was decorated with lacquer. A technique in which the leaves and stems of plants are outlined in gold lacquer surrounding a nashiji filling.
9) Koetsu makie, Korin makie, etc. Lacquer ware named after individual artists who introduced and popularized a specific lacquer technique.
10) maki-hanashi. A Momoyama-period technique in which the gold dustings were left as they were instead of being covered with lacquer and then polished.
Color Techniques
The various colors and pigments used in lacquer ware have already been noted. The pigments may be used either in coloring the lacquer or as pulverized powders; sometimes they are mixed with metallic powders for shading. When used for the production of colored lacquer, the pigments are mixed with suki-urushi, the finest crude transparent lacquer. Actually, pure colors are not seen because of the inherent amber hue of the lacquer itself. However, bright, pure colors are not approved of by the Japanese artisan, who prefers more toned-down, delicate, subtle shades. In general, the Chinese used a wider range of colors in their lacquer work, including white, turquoise, yellow, and different shades of green and red. The problem of vegetable colors being destroyed by the lacquer has already been noted. Vivid colors, such as sky blue and crimson, were not produced until the beginning of the 20th century.
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