If you’re familiar with the Japanese art of wood joinery, you’ll likely find kumiko equally intriguing. The traditional craft emerged in the Asuka era between about 600 and 700 C.E. and similarly eschews nails in favor of perfectly cut pieces that notch into place. Intricate fields of florals and geometric shapes emerge, creating a decorative panel that typically covers windows or divides a room.
A video from The Process, a YouTube channel exploring various manufacturing sectors and hand-crafted techniques, visits the workshop of Kinoshita Mokuge. Viewers are welcomed into the meticulous, labor-intensive process of producing elaborate, interlocked motifs. Japanese Arts also offered a glimpse into this art form a few years back during an equally calming visit to Kurozu Tetsuo’s studio.
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