“Things in Themselves”

2017秋冬季號的內容，延續我們對工藝價值的探索，從日常生活中照見人與物品的親密關係，並發掘出物件自有的美態。

Highlighted stories:

1. The Useful Useless Items / Ryuji Mitani（三谷龍二）

被喻為「木器開拓者」的三谷龍二，大家只知道他創作者的身份，卻不曉得他同時是一位資深的拾荒者。這一回我們走進他的住家，中間不僅談到他創作生涯的點滴，也談到他歷年來蒐集的破爛，即他口中的「無用之物」，是如何啟發出一位創作者的審美和創作意識。

內文節錄：

「沒有用的東西，也有其用處，就是提醒我們，凡事並非非如此不可。『一直在做日常用品、有用的東西時，很多時候便會變得過度追求實用性與技術了，當然這些追求也是令人快樂的、很好的，而且這種『好』是很易懂的，但是否非如此不可呢？我想未必。』」

2. Selectors / Hakdei（黑地）

在談到「生活工藝」的話題時，我們通常只會想到創作者和接收者，卻沒注意到居於兩者之間的挑選者所肩負的角色。近年來標榜「生活工藝」的雜貨店如雨後春荀，我們這次就找來香港新型雜貨店「黑地」的店主阿Pang，聽他細數各式生活器物，並從中觀察一位挑選者的美學觀念。

內文節錄：

「穿行過黑地店內的高聳層架，與Pang一起盤點物件的故事時，構成了後頁裡一個個短篇散記。散記雖然不足以窺見『生活工藝』的全貌，然而聽著Pang對物件生起的零碎想法和記憶，你卻彷彿能洞悉到這些器物、用具之間的同質性，以及他作為一位挑選者的審美意識。」

3. People Who Create on a Deserted Island / Studio Shobu（菖浦學園）

日本鹿兒島的身心障礙人士中心「菖浦學園」近年漸受注目，並多次獲邀展出校友作品，當中包括東京的Shiseido Gallery、東京都庭園美術館、東京都美術館及無印良品等。我們藉著渡假名義，深入了解其校友們的坦率、直接、毫無顧慮個性的刺繡藝術。

內文節錄：

「『就是這位奶奶送我刺繡的了。』朋友說著從口袋裡掏出一塊白色的小布，上面用各色的毛線釘上了一顆紅色的棉球。毛線糾纏成一團，理不出道理來。這片彩色的混沌之中，是漫天綻放的鮮花？還是思潮起伏的七情六慾？在大部人眼裡，它是一團亂七八糟的玩意，但在菖蒲學園裡，它被視為是刺繡藝術。這些年來菖蒲學園的校友作品受邀到日本各地展出，包括東京的Shiseido Gallery、東京都庭園美術館、東京都美術館及無印良品等，令學園漸受注目。作品由身心障礙人士創作固然做成話題，不過最令人矚目的，還是自作品湧出的坦率、直接、毫無顧慮的個性。」

4. The Ritual of Tea / Furze Chan

形形色色的器物，假如遠離了實用，那還會有產生「美」的可能嗎？由香港插畫師Furze Chan的溫潤筆觸所繪製，敘述她在一個尋常的早晨，利用自家蒐集的古董和手工茶具，精心泡製出一壺玉露茶的過程。看著插畫中的優美器物，不僅視覺上得到愉悅，心情也會跟著煥然一新。

內文節錄：

「第一巡的茶味最濃厚，第二、三巡鮮味略為遞減；從最濃喝到最淡，才是一個完整的過程。」

5. Those Once-treasured / Rust Dyeing Artist, Ying-ting Chan（陳穎亭）

除鏽的生活小知識聽過不少，用鐵鏽染色倒是第一次聽見。來自台灣的陳穎亭是一位鐵鏽染藝術家，她四處募集生鏽的物件，傾耳聆聽鐵件主人的故事，並以鏽跡為布料染色；把原來是破損的物件，設法以另種的形式存續下去，是一種「無用之再用」。

內文節錄：

「在2014年，〈鐵鏽物件〉計劃展開，穎亭開始在網絡上公開募集鐵件，和這些鐵件跟主人的故事，直到現在仍然繼續。『一開始是2012年，我唸研究所的畢業作品，是我平常會使用的一些縫紉工具，像針、剪刀等等。有些剪刀使用太久會生鏽，失去了它的功能，我就從這個點去發想。因為已經使用了一段時間，會有一個感情在，即使它已經沒有原來那麼好用，但我也不會想把它丟棄掉，就想說，用我最喜歡的纖維材質，賦予它另外一個生命。』」

This Autumn & Winter 2017 edition continues to reflect upon the value of craftsmanship, by exploring our daily interaction with the handcraft items we use, and by looking into the pure joy of simply admiring the objects themselves.

Highlighted stories include:

1. The Useful Useless Items / Ryuji Mitani（三谷龍二）

An inspiring visit to the home of acclaimed Japanese carpenter and designer, Ryuji Mitani, and an in-depth conversation with him regarding his creative process and his love of useless items.

Excerpt:

Even useless items provide utility; that is, to remind us that things don’t have to be a certain way. “As I create daily, useful items, I often find myself too deliberate in my search for practicality and technique. Of course, this can be a good and happy pursuit, and this ‘goodness’ can be easily understood, but does it have to be this way? I don’t think so.”

2. Selectors / Hakdei（黑地）

In terms of lifestyle craft, we are curious about the pivotal role of a selector, who takes charge of choosing a collection of handcraft goods for sale at a store. The founder of Hakdei, a new kind of Hong Kong miscellaneous store established in 2016, shares his unique point of view.

Excerpt:

While walking through the towering racks in the store, Pang went through the stories of the objects with me, which form the following short passages. Even though these passages do not suffice to shed light on the overall picture of “lifestyle craft”, as I listen to bits and pieces of thoughts and memories of Pang towards these utensils, you somehow manage to obtain an insight into the qualities these utensils and tools share, as well as his aesthetic standard as a selector.

3. People Who Create on a Deserted Island / Studio Shobu（菖浦學園）

A surprising vacation at Studio Shobu, a rehabilitation facility for the disabled located in Kagoshima of Japan, has taught us a new perspective of appreciating the creative aesthetic of aimless minds.

Excerpt:

From his pocket, my friend took out a small piece of white fabric embroidered with various colored threads which are attached to a red cotton ball and said, “The embroidery was a gift from this old lady.” The thread intertwined without any discernible pattern; it could be a vibrant field, it could as well depict a disquiet mind. The “embroideries” of Shobu Gakuen are perhaps rarely recognized by the general public as they are too abstract to decipher. However, the situation is slowly changing as the works are gaining exposure to be appreciated by the Japanese general public through being exhibited in Shiseido Gallery in Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum and Muji. It is fair to say artworks created by the disabled would be comparatively easy to draw attention, but most importantly, it was the genuine earnestness of the work that truly attracted the audience.

4. The Ritual of Tea / Furze Chan

A heart-warming visual guide for learning how to take your time and brew a cup of tea.

Excerpt:

The first brew has the richest tea flavors, and the fresh taste thins slightly in the second, and further in the third brew. Start with the richest and end with the lightest, and only that makes a full course.

5. Those Once-treasured / Rust Dyeing Artist, Ying-ting Chan（陳穎亭）

An interesting conversation with Ying-ting Chan, a rust dyeing artist from Taiwan, who has chosen this rare form of dyeing art to preserve the beauty of no longer useful objects.

Excerpt:

In 2014, she began an ongoing project titled “Rusted Objects” by enlisting the help of the internet community in collecting iron objects and their stories with their owners. “It goes back to 2012, when I was working on my graduation work at the research institute, involving sewing tools I normally used such as needles and scissors. Some scissors get rusty and no longer function after being used for a long time. That is the point of departure of my thoughts. After using them for some time, I develop some emotional attachment to them. Therefore, even though they are no longer as useful as they used to be, I am reluctant to throw them away. Then I came up with the idea of giving it another life by using fibers, the material that I like the most.”

Cover image courtesy of Ryuji Mitani
Print Details: 140 pages, perfect bound with a white cloth spine, full-color.
Printed in Hong Kong.   

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