Japanese Broken Ceramic Art

Kintsugi is the japanese art of putting broken pottery pieces back together with gold built on the idea that in embracing flaws and imperfections you can create an even stronger more.

Japanese broken ceramic art.

The translation from japanese of kintsugi or kintsukuroi means golden joinery or repair with gold where the gold powder is applied on lacquer some refer to it as kintsugi art with a metaphor of kintsugi life re birth or wabi sabi philosophy this technique transforms broken ceramic or pottery into beautiful. The name of the technique is derived from the words kin golden and tsugi joinery which translate to mean golden repair. Kintsugi 金継ぎ golden joinery also known as kintsukuroi 金繕い golden repair is the japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold silver or platinum a method similar to the maki e technique. The technique consists in joining fragments and giving them a new more refined aspect.

When she s not greasing editorial gears she likes to run ride climb and lift things and make lo tech goods like zines desserts and altered clothing. As a philosophy it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object rather than something. The meaning of kintsugi kintsukuroi gold repair art. This traditional japanese art uses a precious metal liquid gold liquid silver or lacquer dusted with powdered gold to bring together the pieces of a broken pottery item and at the same time enhance the breaks.

Next time you drop a beloved ceramic don t worry about hiding every last crack take a cue from the japanese art of kintsugi instead. Sophia is the managing editor of the make. The japanese art of recognizing beauty in broken things. In addition to kintsugi their skills may have included maki e a technique for painting fine gold or silver florals and landscapes onto.

Poetically translated to golden joinery kintsugi or kintsukuroi is the centuries old japanese art of fixing broken pottery rather than rejoin ceramic pieces with a camouflaged adhesive the kintsugi technique employs a special tree sap lacquer dusted with powdered gold silver or platinum.