Kintsugi is a traditional Japanese craft technique for repairing broken ceramics using urushi, a plant-based adhesive lacquer resin, then applying gold or silver. The crack or fault of the object is emphasized and embellished, in contrast to other forms of repair that attempt to hide a history of damage. The technique has developed since the late sixteenth century.
Kin Tsugi follows the philosophy of Wabi-sabi – a world view centered around the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete”.
In my work Kin Tsugi Transformations, this concept and idea are expanded to broken objects as well as architecture, landscapes and relations.
The transformative repair starts with an invitation to see first what is worth being repaired, what needs to be repaired or what is not broken but needs transformation.
Then, the engagement with the transformation becomes almost like a contemplation, a process of conversation and negotiation.
During this process of mending, objects, architecture, landscapes, relations become sacred and more precious than the original, undamaged versions – pieces of art, emphasized with luxuriant gold or silver, but at the same time accessible and meant for use, reminding us of the passing of time and helping us to embrace imperfection.
The ritual character of this work is expressed in the importance of the process rather than the outcome, the aesthetics rather than the functionality and an emphasis in the amelioration of objects and situations that we relate to with affect.
Another node of the work manifests as Bio Kin Tsugi (developed from Ceramic Scar Tissue), where the concept of healing and the scar are explored.
More blog entries and activities can be found here.
Christallina Rox 