I interviewed some Kokeshi craftsmen about how they started and learned their craft.
Kokeshi dolls are unique dolls, which have been made with unspoken rules, influenced by surrounding environment and the craftsman’s character.
I would like to share some information that I heard from them.
In June, about Masafumi ABO who is a Tsugaru style Kokeshi craftsman.
I hope you will enjoy it.
ユニークで、東北の風土と作り手と取り巻く人々に育まれてきたこけし。こけし工人さん達に伺ったお話をご紹介していきたいと思います。お楽しみいただけましたら幸いです。ー日本文は英語の後に続きますー
Why did you became a kokeshi craftsman?
Masafumi: The reason I got into making kokeshi dolls was because my father is a kokeshi craftsman.
When I graduated university, I was looking for a job where I can paint and make something, because I like it. I thought if I have got a job, I wouldn’t make kokeshi dolls, so I decided to be a kokeshi craftsman.
I have many friends who wanted to be engaged with manufacturing work.
I was lacky that I was born in a kokeshi craftsman’s home.
What was the specific training when you were an apprentice?
M: For me, there wasn’t any special ‘apprentice training’. I did wooden lathe duty even though I just started kokeshi work.
When my master (Masafumi’s father Muchihide) started learning kokeshi, he lived-in the master’s house, preparing wood like stripping bark and cutting wood, and did some kind of housework for his master. It looks like apprentice’s duty of Rakugo. (Rakugo is a type of traditional storytelling in Japan. It has an apprenticeship as well.)
I heard there is a specified period for learning as an apprentice in Tsugaru kokeshi style. How long is it?
M: At the Tsugaru kokeshi union, we need to learn under the guidance of a master for at least 3 years (before it was 5 years). Then we will be able to identify ourself as ‘Tsugaru kokeshi craftsman’.
After the training period, if the craftsman belong to the Tsugaru kokeshi union (recommendations from 2 or more craftsmen are necessary.) who will be able to join the events at Tsugaru kokeshi kan, which is a museum and fascinating association of Tsugaru kokeshi.
Do you have any kind of license as a kokeshi craftsman? When did you think that you had become a full-fledged craftsman?
M: No, they isn’t specific license, but when my kokeshi dolls were sold at the same place with my master’s dolls, I felt that I had become a full-fledged kokeshi craftsman.
Did you learn about making kokeshi dolls from your masters through lectures?
No, it was not really learning through words.
I started practicing shaving wood, painting colour, drawing lathe lines and so on, then started making some small wooden toys like spinning tops. Next, my master asked me to I paint kokeshi dolls.
When I made kokeshi, my master Muchihide sorted out good dolls from the bad. I should think by myself what was good balance of kokeshi dolls based on that.
If my kokeshi dolls were accepted, master would sell with his dolls at events.
In addition, I helped master’s work like making mementos of the occasion and processing a large amount of orders.
Do you have some special feeling for copying classic kokeshi dolls?
I think making restoration is a kind of learning of kokeshi dolls for craftsmen.
I think the restored kokeshi dolls are previous traditional style dolls. If someone wants it, I will make it. I make the dolls if nobody else can, but there is some possibility the original craftsman’s descendants will make the style of doll, then I don’t and can’t make it.
What is ‘Tsugaru kokeshi’ in your mind?
It’s Tsugaru children who are innocent and playing in the snow with red cheeks.
I hope my kokeshi dolls convey the climate or character of Tsugaru to my customers.
The uniqueness of Tsugaru region that I think is.
It is a closed society, where people worry about others think. But we have the word ‘Motsuke’ in our dialect, which means ‘stand out’ from others. That means when people stand out in our village it is good or that is necessary for the society. When we call someone ‘Motsuke’, it sounds like we want to root for the ‘Motsuke’ people with enthusiasm.
Also ‘Joppari’, which is used for when people don’t change their mind, stubborn in one word. We use joppari to means ‘stubborn, which contains the extra meaning ‘sometimes we need stubborn’. Joppari can be a respectful word for realizing someone’s original intention.
For example Zenji SATO (1925-1985) (who was a Tsugaru kokeshi craftsman) was a sort of ‘Motsuke’. He got into an argument with his master Hidetaro MORI (1895-1986) who was a famous kokeshi craftsman of Tsugaru kokeshi. (Still his dolls have high a price among kokeshi collectors.)
Because of the argument, Zenji couldn’t make his master’s style kokeshi doll. But Zenji had a lot of apprentices and had a kokeshi club in junior high school. He was a distinguished person for Tsugaru kokeshi. I(Masafumi) think Zenji was a Motsuke type.
Maybe my father Muchihide is also a 'motsuke' person. My father likes making new style kokeshi dolls and he brings those to local newspaper’s to publish. That looks like he is an attention seeker.
These characters are the Tsugaru personality.
What would you like to make in the future?
I would like to continue making traditional and original kokeshi dolls.
Because of I’m a maker, I don’t decorate my house with kokeshi.
I like feeling close to my customers. Especially when they choose their favorite in front of me.
About apple kokeshi dolls
You have been making many kinds of kokeshi dolls inspired by apples. How do you get the ideas?
Because Aomori prefecture is the number one apple producing area in Japan, so I make every apple kokeshi if I get ideas.
Note: The amount of apples produces in Aomori prefecture in 2020.
Aomori 463,300 tons / whole of Japan 763,300 tons, 61% of all apples Japan. (by Aomori apple association.)
こけしを始めたきっかけは ?
家がこけし屋だった、という影響です。
大学卒業時、物作りや元々描くのが好きだった絵を描く仕事を探してはいたのですが、一旦就職すると仕事優先になるからこけしは作らないかも、と思い、最初からこけし屋になりました。
友人達でも、物作りに関わりたい人はいたが、自分は実家がそういった場所だったからラッキーだったと思います。
津軽こけしの「修行」とは？
・修行中の弟子の主な仕事
今はそこまで「弟子の仕事」というのはなく、最初から機械の前に座ったりしていました。
六知秀工人が住み込みでこけし工人の弟子になっていた頃は、機械の前に座る前に木の支度や生活のことなどもやっていたそうです。今で言うと落語の弟子みたいな感じでしょうか。
・津軽こけしは「規定の修行期間」があると伺いましたが、どのくらい？
津軽こけしの組合では、師匠について3年間の修行(以前は5年)後に津軽系と名乗れようになりました。
工人会に入ると(2名以上の推薦が必要)、こけし館などイベント（2022年当時）に出店できるようになります。
・「一人前の工人」として免許などはありますか？
特別な免許などはないけれど、師匠のこけしと一緒に売ってもらえるようになった時に「一人前になってきた」という感じがありました。
・師匠から直接言葉で教わったことはありますか？
「言葉で教わった」感じではありません。
最初は、棒を削って色をつけて、ろくろ線を引く練習などをしていました。
その後、コマなどの小物を作り始めて、「顔を描いてみたら？」と言われて描き始めました。
その後は描いたこけしを見て六知秀工人が「これはいい」「これはだめ」と選んでいく感じ。こけしのバランスなど何が違うかを自分で考えていきました。
「これはいい」というこけしは、師匠がイベントへ行く際に一緒に持って行って売ってもらう。
その他、記念品などの量が多い注文などの師匠の仕事の手伝いをしました。
・阿保さんの中で「津軽こけし」とは？
津軽の子ども。雪の中で遊んでほっぺの赤い純朴な子ども。場所や風土が見ただけで分かるといいな、と思っています。
津軽らしさ…
周囲を見ながら生きている、村社会だけれども
「もつけ」：人よりぐんと目立つような、という意味の方言。
があるように、「それもいいことだ」「そういうことも必要だ」といった人を鼓舞するような意味を含んでいる熱い気持ちを表す言葉や、
「じょっぱり」：自分の信念を変えない。ある意味がんこ（時にはじょっぱりもいいことだ、という感じで使われる）
という言葉があるのが津軽らしさ。
師匠の盛秀太郎さんと喧嘩して、師匠の型を作れなかった佐藤善二さんは「もつけ」っぽいと思います。善二さんは、だから弟子をたくさんとった。
六知秀工人は、もつけっぽいかな（笑）
・阿保さんが、これからやっていきたいと考えていることはありますか？
伝統こけしを作りながら、創作的なこけしも作り続けながらやっていきたいと思います。