Commissioned Aikidou Kakejiku or Wallscroll

This scroll was commissioned for an Aikidou trainer in the Southern US. It says in English, Through the virtue of humble training, understanding of Aiki is acquired naturally.
I had a difficult time obtaining the original Japanese saying, if there is an original quote accorded to Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikidou. So I received help on the translation from two sources, my wife and another gentleman. It reads in Japanese, 謙虚に鍛錬をつめば合気の悟りは自ずと得られる　(Kenkyo ni tanren wo tsumeba, aiki no satori wa onozu to erareru.)
Just for informations sake, there were 4 iterations provided by Mr. Akamatsu.  Then my wife took the translations, and melded them into syllabic form that would work for calligraphy and the lines provided. It is written in the Gyousho, semi-cursive style by Ryugyoku Yamada.

The scroll was made by myself, it is a three step style scroll called sandan hyougu. The ichimonji is a a wave pattern with gold and silver. The chuumawashi, intermediate cloth is a burnt orange, with large ivy karakusa (arabesque) pattern. This cloth is a pure silk (Shouken) The Ten/Chi is a dried reed color shike silk. It is completed with a jikusaki that has a red lacquer, and machined edge, and the hanging string is a light green with gold (kinka).

Shrike Kakejiku

Working on a Shrike scroll for American Bonsai Society 2013 convention.

Bonsai Scroll with Autumn Poem

This kakejiku is done in the Three Step Style called Sandan Hyougu. It has a Gold on Green Ichimonji with a Green Ivy Arabesque Chuumawashi and a khaki Ten/Chi.

This was made for a bonsai Artist in Northern California and is already sold. If you would like a similar scroll made please contact to sales@customjapanesecalligraphy.com to work with me on designing a custom scroll.

明月秋Meigetsu no Aki is a poem or phrase for Autumn. This translation from Japanese to English is completed by Jonathan Maples from page 392 of the 禅語吉語字典 Zengo Kichigo Jiten.

The general meaning is The beauty of the Autumn Moon. Because you live, you exist on the Earth. Because of that you are the master of your soul. It is through how you live that the Earth’s beauty is completed.

 This Zen Buddhist phrase is part of a larger scripture written 月は知る明月の秋、花は知る一様の春 Tsuki wa Shiru Meigetsu no Aki, Hana wa Shiru Issama no Haru. The moon is the symbol of Autumn, and the flower is the symbol of spring. Both know they are the beauty of their season. It is your living that witnesses the beauties of these seasons. 

Humans are the same. There are a diverse and many people living on the earth. Each person has their own will and individuality. Each one also has their own roles on this world. Each person reflects their beauty on this earth by carrying out their role and holding it dear in their heart. Furthermore, the fruits of this earth are gathered through the entire body of the people doing their work on this earth. 

Dimensions:

Name in Kanji	Name in English	Size in Bun	Size in Inches
天	Ten	99	11.81
上中廻し	Ue Chuumawashi	37	4.41
上一文字	Ue Ichimonji	9	1.07
紙本の幅さ	Artwork Width	38	4.53
紙本の長さ	Artwork Length	107	12.76
柱	Pillars	15	1.79
下一文字	Shita Ichimonji	7	0.84
下中廻し	Shita Chuumawashi	27	3.22
地	Chi	75	8.95
掛け軸の幅さ	Scroll Width	68	8.11
掛け軸の長さ	Scroll Length	352	41.99

登龍門Touryuumon

This is the phrase I chose as the theme for my　床の間 Toko no Ma display, which will be exhibited at the Clark Center for Japanese Art and Culture. This museum is located in Hanford, California.

This is going to be a beautiful display. There is a story behind the phrase Touryuumon, and will explain it at a later date. Just be aware that the scroll is done in a Sandan hyougu (Three Step) style. It is hard to see in this picture but the Chuumawashi cloth looks like red with tinted dragon scales. The white in the chi represents the mists on the water and the white in the ten represents the sky to which the dragon will ascend....

More coming after the competition.

3 Step (phase) Scroll

The scroll at the left is in a style called Sandan Hyougu. Dan is the character in step, or stairs. (Dankai 段階 or Kaidan 階段). The reason for this is that it utilizes three distinct cloths. After the Ichimonji (red and gold top and bottom border) are attached to the work, then the Chumawashi with distinct Hashira, Ten (Heaven) and Chi (Earth) are attached to the scroll. The Chumawashi in this example is a light green/gold ivy pattern silk.

The last layer is to insert the final Ten and Chi , which is the solid red cloth of this scroll.

The Three layers or phases are then completed by creating the Mimiori and putting the final layer of Urauchi to complete the scroll. The look and feel of this style of scroll is a little more flashy than the maru hyougu style found on most of the other posts. Another scroll in the Sandan Hyougu example will follow later this week.

Thanks are extended to Ben Strawn, a Salida, Colorado artist for providing this block print for mounting.

For inquiries on purchasing this scroll please contact sales@customjapanesecalligraphy.com