Perhaps the wrapping paper is the true 'face' of a shop—a reflection of the Japanese practice where even a simple purchase is wrapped with meticulous care, treating the item with the dignity of a gift. While the paper itself carries no price tag, it is often designed by renowned artists or crafted by the shopkeepers themselves. In these sheets, which leave a sweet aftertaste long after the food is finished, I feel the shop’s unique worldview—a quiet, hidden passion that I would call their remarkable power of presentation.
Through centuries of commerce, Kyoto is perhaps the region that understands better than any other the human psychology of judging the contents to be of ‘high quality’ simply because the wrapping is stylish. This could also be seen as an expression of absolute confidence in their own products. Please, come and enjoy this enchanting world of wrapping paper!
京都・両足院に生まれ育った着物家・伊藤仁美さんの連載「和を装い、日々を纏う」。連載に伴う特別企画として、古来の自然観や価値観を受け継ぐ人々と仁美さんが対談し、日本の美の源泉を探ります。
今回は、日本における「神経美学」研究の第一人者、石津智大・関西大学教授と、「美と脳」をテーマに語り合っていただきました。
撮影協力：Shiseido Beauty Park
Keisai Eisen (渓斎英泉, 1791–1848) was an ukiyo-e artist active during the late Edo period. Whilst admiring Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎, 1760–1849), he established and developed his very own unique artistic style. Hokusai also painted masterpieces of shunga (春画), but in terms of sheer volume of works, Eisen published a far greater number than Hokusai from the Bunsei (文政) to the Tenpo (天保) eras. His work is characterised by its bewitching depictions of women and the incorporation of various elaborate ideas. We delve into his charm by viewing the shunga by Eisen held in the collection of Uragami Mitsuru, a world-renowned shunga collector who also collaborated on the shunga exhibition at the British Museum.
One early afternoon, whilst having a casual chat with my neighbours, the topic of kyusu teapots (急須) came up. "It seems some people nowadays don't even know what they are," someone noted. "Really? Then how do they make tea?" "Perhaps that culture is fading, and they just drink from plastic bottles?" "Y-you can't be serious!?"
I realised that, despite bringing up the fact that the kanji characters for Kyusu was curious, I actually knew nothing about its etymology. So, I decided to do a bit of research on the subject!
