My sons, they work as migrants. Two of them. One's just got a grandbaby
and another is doing his business in the field of medical instruments. I
mean he's making the rounds of doctors. Sorry, it looks dirty, but I wiped
over just before. (All SASHIMONO(furnishing) craftsmen get along well?)
Oh, yeah. We went out for drink, just four, five days ago. (Around where?)
In the neighborhood of UENO and ASAKUSA. You know, it sometimes happens
that this guy doesn't hit it off with that guy. I myself can get along with
any guys but there are lots of characters. I can't read others' mind,
rather, it's much fun to drink together. (There are lots of cheerful persons
among these craftsmen. Why?) Oh, how can I say, guys keep saying whatever
they want to say, and that's quite O.K., 'cause it's only for the time
passing. Their words don't have double meanings and if there are something
unfavorable, they say so instantly in the presence of others. (Are there
many SASHIMONO craftsmen?) It seems so. My father hated things like unions
and he had been working all by himself. In our age, things have changed.
We have to associate with others. Back in time, among craftsmen, this guy
stole that guy's job or this guy copied another's skill, such stories were
so often, I hear. In fact, even now it happens. We are members of the
promoting committee, and it's understandable that there are various
occupations. Isn't it hot? I turned on the electric fan just in case.
(Thank you.) …
I was a high school dropout so I'm almost a junior high graduate. More or
less, if I'd choose this kind of work, I thought school grades were not
necessary. Anyway, Nakanishi ancestry has been all SASHIMONO craftsmen.
(Is this picture your father?) My father. He died at his 80. (Had he
worked all through his life?) Yeah, he'd been working since he was a boy.
He was a craftsman of old days and he started at the bottom of the ladder.
There was MIYOSHI MOKKO Carpentry in HONGO, it's still there, he was from
that carpentry. With his apprenticeship over, he went to my cousin's father
and worked with them. Then they split. (Do you look like your father?)
They say so. (Your cousin makes reading desks for SHAMISEN(three-stringed
Japanese instrument), and how about you?) It's all the same. In short, when
an order of a box comes, we make a box. I do make SHAMISEN chests and
others.
(This sooty ceiling looks exactly the period
piece.) Oh, that. To tell you the truth, I was going to smoke the wood. I
quit it for a while, 'cause I knew you visit here. By drying wood I try to
correct a warp. Drying and smoking wood over HICHIRIN(a portable clay
cooking stove). So soot goes up to the ceiling. (All the SASHIMONO
craftsmen do that?) When we buy wood, every wood has a warp. For instance,
by doing like this (hitting wood by his finger), you can examine the warp.
Then, some of them make uneven sound. We can tell which part is thicker.
Then we dry the wood over fire and correct the warp till it makes even
sound. We leave it cool for a while, then we use it. You see, only to
correct a warp, you can shave off the thicker part. But that makes fairly
thin wood. When you shave off flat wood, it won't get very thin. And you
got to shave off wood into the same thickness. Then, wood is smoked and
dried over the fire forever during the day, and when the work finished, it's
quite sooty in my nose. ・・
It's no good with fluorescent lights. We got to need normal electric
lights. Under the fluorescent light, first of all, you can't tell the color
(of the wood), can you? Then you can't tell where the line is, 'cause it's
been drawn on the white surface. You take the trouble to put the wood down
on the floor to cut it right. (The plane is?) It makes good sound,
doesn't it? If a plane doesn't shave well, this sound doesn't come out.
This is the plane that I've used since I was about 15. It's really good
because I've used it for a long time and this plane got too familiar to me.
(Cameraman: Excuse me, but could you take your wristwatch off?) Oh, my, my
Rolex shines! It makes halation. There are some unique ones, even in
planes. This plane, for instance, is that of students. Students had to buy
them through school. Even this one, when we do use…. When we use this
kind, we remake from a holder of a plane, or we can't make use of them.
(Praise a fool (and scissors), and you may make him useful. Is that it?)
Ha-ha. Well, I wasn't good at learning at school, then I couldn't help
doing like this. (The thumb of your left foot, which holds the wood, is it
possible for us to train our thumb like yours?) Yes, it is but if you move
your foot, it goes cramp. I don't know exactly how many times I shave this
off until it's completed. ・・
As for KIRI, we have to splice many pieces of wood. If there is wide KIRI
wood, it's called as precious wood and no use for us. (Are there many kind
of KIRI?) Yes, there are. KIRI from IWATE, AKITA and around SANRIKU
region. There is also KIRI from China but that's out of question. After
all, that kind of KIRI is used as core material for cabinets. (The grain is
different?) It's no good at all. There are no fine grain. (Do you use
KUWA also?) Yes, we do. (About the nature, KIRE and KUWA are different?)
The texture is completely different. One is very hard and beautiful, that
is KUWA. (KUWA becomes brown?) Yes, it does. As it's expensive, there are
not many orders. (Is KUWA stuck to this?) Yes, it is. We make 10 pieces
out of 1BU, so that each one should be 1RIN. (Taking up the material with
his hand,) It's very thin. (It's amazing it's so thin!) And we shave it
off again. That is called TSUKIITA board. So our material is quite
different from plywood boards. From a big KUWA tree, we manage to make out
thin pieces through almost Japanese paper making process. It's not for
barbecue but we broil KUWA wood and with a rotating edged tool, thin KUWA
pieces come out one after another. They are sold as a bundle. So, in a
bundle, all the wood pieces have the same grain. Before each one was only
two or three hundred yen but nowadays it's more than a thousand yen,
probably. This tiny material and you can't buy only one or two pieces. If
they are from this sort of thick wood, twenty or thirty pieces would be made
of. Then you got to buy them all so it's going to be some ten thousands
yen. ・・
I make almost all the cabinets by orders so there are
hardly one for my wife. Only that NANAHAI-HIKIDASHI(chest with seven
drawers) is the one that I made for my wife. I just put it there 'cause I
can't sell it. (For your wife?) That's right. I can't do anything for her
so I thought I'd make one. ・・
(What you make is for professional people?) Yes, for people related to
KABUKI, KOUTA(Japanese ballad accompanied on the SHAMISEN)masters,
HAUTA(Japanese short song also accompanied on the SHAMISEN)masters and so
on. (Are they mostly fixed clients?) In a word, there are SHAMISEN
wholesalers and we make a deal with them. (Do the wholesalers tell you who
will use what you make?) No, they don't. Never. Only when the client is
very special person, then they tell me who it is. For instance, this is for
MISORA HIBARI(One of the most famous singer who is dead now), and so on. I
think a lot of famous people have used what I made. (Including HIBARI?)
HIBARI? For her I made a SHAMISEN cabinet. One of my clients lives in
SHINBASHI and his wife visits HIBARI's house often and took care of
everything. For instance, marking with a crest of descending wisteria.
This is a reading desk for GIDAYUU(Japanese ballad began in EDO era).
Originally, it is made with KEYAKI(Japanese zelkova tree). It's very
heavy, 'cause GIDAYU is sung with a growl. They put their hands on the desk
like this. So it should be heavy. But this one, I was asked to make a
portable one, and I measured up all by myself. (Does it have drawers?)
Yeah. In these drawers, you can put everything that you removed from its
body. The other day, I happened to visit the client and he says he was
grateful that it's very convenient. This is AIBIKI, on which you sit when
you play SHAMISEN. A chair to sit straight. This is also AIBIKI. It looks
like a lunch-box, doesn't it? It's foldable and everything can be put away
in this box. (Is this a traditional shape?) Well, most of SASHIMONO
furniture has lasted about 200years. (This foldable type also?) This has
been made since the beginning of MEIJI era.・・
(What do you put in this?) That is for SHAMISEN strings, to sell them.
This is also a special ordered one. About 30years ago, it was sold at
around 400 thousands yen. If it was sold now, it would cost at least one
million yen. We never use plywood, you know, but real wood. And we use
wood of all the grain. As for metal parts, we also use pretty good ones.
So it costs at least one million yen. Even if I made it at the cheapest, it
costs at least 800 thousands yen. (How long does it take?) If I'd make
that, around half a month. I can make it in half a month. (This has 15
drawers!) Yeah, 15 drawers. I really am reluctant to make a chest with
more than 3 drawers! It's difficult. Apart from machine manufacturing,
handwork is difficult. We need to do a tight work. No good with a slight
gap. (To do a reluctant work is somewhat you can show your skill, isn't
it?) You are right. So, anyway, I manage to do the work but it still isn't
good to be seen my work by my fellows, right? It's awful to be said, "Oh,
what a disappointed work you've done!" So, we got to do a neat work. Other
unwelcome work is something ordered by our fellows. Any goods nor any cheap
and easy goods.・・
And also furniture ordered from the Imperial Household Agency. When I make
those, even my wife can't come in this room. I have to think of it, over
and over. They order only difficult things. (For instance?) Well, up
until now, things like a frame. They hold the Imperial New Year's Poetry
Reading every year and each of the attendants writes his or her poem on a
pair of SHIKISHI (a square piece of fancy paper for writing a poem on). So
the frame is to put the SHIKISHI. This frame, I make. And then, the framed
poets are given to Ambassadors of each country. I've made about thirty
couples of them. And here is a box for MANYOUSHU(Japanese oldest song
series). I also made a box for jewels. That was an octagonal shaped box.
I'm doing handwork and I'm not smart enough to calculate each angle but I
did my best. As a matter of fact it was pretty good. So this one is to put
MANYOUSHU. Usually, on finishing my work, I seal it with a branding iron of
my own but not for this one. Those for the Imperial Household Agency or for
museums are not allowed to seal with a stamp. One time I was asked to make
a cabinet to put something valuable so I made it and seal it with my own
stamp. Then I was told, "No, Nakanishi, it can't bear a seal of your name,"
and I shaved it off. (a laugh) They say a cabinet is not a main thing but
the content is. The content is a leading part so I can't seal it, they say.
Nothing of the sort! I'm a cabinet maker, right?・・
This one is in a HOUMOTSUDEN treasury at a famous shrine. There are
WASHI(Japanese paper) in it. Each piece costs 80 thousands yen and there
are tens and hundreds pieces of paper. All of them is said to be put in it.
Something is written on each paper, of course. (Like archives?) That's
right. Then I was told, "Mr. Nakanishi, we can't see that." Only the chief
priest of the shrine can open it. It was so much trouble to make this
cabinet. (Did they give you a pattern?) No, I do by myself. (You think by
yourself?) Yes, I do. Also we got to talk. About how much volume should
the cabinet contain, or what about doing in this way, then O.K. let's do it
in that way. Something like that. (By course of a traditional way?)
Almost, yes. Anyway I look into the old book to get an idea. Then a chief
of another shrine saw what I made and he asked me too make better one than
that. This time a box should contain shells of a sword. One drawer should
contain 15 pieces of them and 5 drawers are needed in this cabinet. Those
sword shells worth 500 thousands yen or one million yen. They have work
with gold.・・
(Are there a lot of specially ordered goods?) Everything is specially
ordered here. There are no ready-made goods and I'm in trouble on
interviews. (Isn't it reasonable to make as many as needed?) That's right,
but the truth is, I want to make ready-made ones, then I really don't know
what kinds. I, myself, often go to department stores to see furniture and I
found there are not pretty good ones. So many ideas come to mind, this kind
of goods or that kind. But it's hard to complete. Things that I gave up to
finish are put away in a FUROSHIKI(Japanese wrapping cloth) under the
stairs. (a laugh) (Do you seal with your name?) Well, yes, I have my
branding iron, just written as SASHIMONOSHI, MISAGORO. (MISAGORO?) That's
my father's name. So I took over his name as the second MISAGORO. MISAGORO
is better than MASAO, isn't it? It's much nicer and sounds pleasant. ・・
Doing this kind of work, I have chances to know a lot of people and that's
good. Besides (wholesaler) clients there are also a lot of individual
customers. But not busy as before. It's the times. (Are your sons also in
apprenticeship?) Not so hard ones, though. Three years, I think for three
years, both of them. Well, I told them to learn at least the basic skills.
(Will they return here again?) Of course when it gets busy here. In about
a month, they'll have a feel for doing this work. I, myself, began working
when I was 15 or 16. Sometimes I left my work half-finished, and sometimes
I ran away. So my cousin used to tell me, "You are lucky guy, 'cause you do
your work in between leaving away and coming back." (a laugh) (Do you have
orders continuously?) Yes, at least continuously. As a matter of fact, I
have orders almost everyday. But the point is there used to be five orders
from five different wholesalers, while I have one order from one wholesaler
now. And in between there comes other orders by chance. That's the
situation. There are some individual SHAMISEN wholesalers but I can't do
the work from them all by myself. After all, they know what we do. Because
of the nature of our handwork, they are patient about us. That' good. In
the old days, It was an argument (to speak to clients). We were too busy
to finish the work in time. Both my father and I was cooperating but we
couldn't make it. And then the client came to us and got angry with my
father. Because I was young and short-tempered, I said to him, "You! When
I say we can't, we can't!" No matter how hard I did, I already knew the
process. If they persist this ought to be some time tomorrow, we can't make
it in a hurry, never. That sort of argument, I did(with my client). Still
now, this head clerk (of one of our clients) says, "We used to argue with
each other, right?"・・
Price put by a craftsman
SHAMISEN business is slow. Changing the times, old master(of SHAMISEN) is
passing away. With the death of old master, young master takes over the
head of a school. Then it's getting hard (for him) to recognize a really
good thing. He tends to seek cheaper ones. Even with the KUWA wood, I got
a call the day before yesterday, this SHAMISEN dealer wants to sell
KUWA-made cabinet at 100 thousands yen. That means we have to sell it to
him at 50 thousands yen but we put the price, you can ask any SASHIMONO
craftsman, at least around 80 thousands yen. So my fellows say that it's a
fake one (if it were sold at 100 thousands yen). I can tell (if it's real
or not), because I have repaired such one before. It was also plywood made.
(Is it getting hard for users to tell what is real good?) I hope young
people recognize good ones a little better. They tend to get cheaper ones.
But that is also understandable, because we buy a thing at cheaper
price.(laugh) It's almost the same. But as long as it's Japanese thing, I
recommend you to buy more expensive ones. It's actually not expensive. The
price put by a craftsman is different from a price put by a merchant. Quite
cheaper.・・
(Can we ask you repairs also?) Well, as for drawers, because of the nature
of pulling out and pushing in, they are easy to be worn out, then we repair
them immediately. No repairs due to claims like broken or weak. It's
something like to have wear and tear and certain parts wear out. After all
they are made of wood. But repairing isn't profitable. No need to use
materials, 'cause the thing is already completed. When somewhere is
loosened, then we can make it tighter. For the purpose, only a bit of
materials will do. ・・
(Do you think that customers have decreased?) As less and less customers
visit the SHAMISEN store, I think our customers have also decreased. But in
order not to let us doing nothing, such SHAMISEN store give us orders no
matter how many go into their inventories. That's good. That helps us.
Long before, when this work is done, then the next is this one, like that.
There were sort of constant orders. Now, when we bring in the completed
good, we begin to talk what to do next. It's the times. In old days, we
were paid in advance. "Mr. Nakanishi, this is your next work", in return of
cash in advance. Then, my father went out and spent the money. It was
terrible in those days. Then he said, "That one, material hasn't dried up
yet, so is there any new work?" And he came home with a new order. (laugh)
Most craftsmen do the same thing, I think. And then, nowadays, they say,
"Well then, Mr. NAKANISHI, why don't we deal with cash only?" (cash only?)
We never use checkbooks. Of course no notes.・・
(Do you watch period dramas?) I like watching period TV-dramas, but most of
all, I'm interested in properties in the setting. On watching a drama at
the theatre, it's the same. I watch properties in the background. Coming
home, I make a sketch of them and think if I make that (kind of furniture)
here. (In period dramas, there is a place to drink from daytime) We also
drink from daytime. When someone visit here in the afternoon, then we go,
"why don't we go out for drink?" Something like that. After all we don't
have customers here. And when I got behind (with my work), then I'd do it
at night. (laugh)
