Mainichi Productions

A documentary film looking at the work of Shiko Munakata, a woodblock artist. His prints are based on Buddhist philosophy and are highly original and Oriental in style.

Kazumi Murose was designated a holder of Important Intangible Cultural Property for his maki-e art by the Japanese government in 2008. He followed in the footsteps of his father, urushi artist Shunji Murose, and studied under such modern urushi masters as Gonroku Matsuda and Yoshikuni Taguchi. They taught him to “learn from people,” “learn from objects,” and “learn from nature.” This advice became the basis of the processes Murose employs in the quest to produce works in new materials. In addition, he learns from traditional Japanese lacquerwork by conserving cultural works and incorporating their materials and techniques into his contemporary pieces. This film presents how Murose achieves this, his views on creating works, and how he shares and passes on the values of Japanese urushi work, both at home and abroad. It is a meticulous record of the method and spirit behind the creative endeavors of Kazumi Murose, an urushi artist living in the present day.