A Display of Lacquer
(negotiations with a medium)
Natural lacquer — sourced from the sap of the East Asian lacquer tree and one of the oldest known paints — is a medium that imposes specific conditions on painting, drying, and finishing. Together with lacquer masters, I make these demands the main concern of the work, so that lacquer comes into view on its own terms.
"The Lacquer Tree", 2019, wood from the lacquer tree, stainless-steel peg, 54 x 58 cm, with Sergej Kirilov, collection of the artist
The iconic work of the series is made from planks of the lacquer tree itself, the very wood from which lacquer is drawn.
"Untitled", 2011 - 2026, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 50 x 50 cm, with Mariko Nishide
Natural lacquer is unlike any other paint. It behaves according to its own rules. It cures slowly in humidity, it reacts unpredictably with pigments, and it often dictates what can and cannot be done. Working with it feels less like you are in creative control and more like negotiating with a material that holds all the cards.
"Monokurômu", 2012 - 2024, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 60 x 60 cm, with Sergej Kirilov
With lacquer, there is roughly a ten year gap between painting the work and it being fully cured. During that time, you have to expect that the color might still change, often becoming lighter. I learned not to give the work a definite title until lacquer had its way with the color, or just use a generic title instead.
"Antibacterial Monochrome", 2019, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 50 x 50 cm, with Sergej Kirilov, private collection
Natural lacquer is sourced from the sap of the East Asian lacquer tree, or Toxicodendron vernicifluum, a relative of poison ivy. While it is still wet, it will cause a severe allergic reaction if it touches your skin. Only after years of exposure does one develop a degree of immunity. But once it has cured — which takes on average a few days in the controlled humidity of a curing cabinet — it has undergone a remarkable change. Lacquered surfaces are durable, resistant to heat and acidity, and have antibacterial properties.
"Cameo White", 2023, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 70 x 70 cm, with Sergej Kirilov
Natural lacquer is a medium that knows no white.
The lightest shade that can be made in natural lacquer is something called “cameo white.” It is not really white at all. It resembles the color of the sap of the lacquer tree when it has just been tapped. For a brief moment the sap is pale and milky, almost like a diluted cream.
But as soon as it comes into contact with air it begins to change. The liquid slowly turns brown, and that transformation never fully leaves the material. Even when pigments are added and the lacquer is carefully refined, a true white simply cannot be achieved.
"Dusty Yellow", 2014 - 2018, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 55 x 55 cm, with Sergej Kirilov
Yellow happens to be the most difficult color to achieve in lacquer. The medium is known to “eat” pigments, and yellow is especially vulnerable. If the curing process is not exactly right, the color turns dull — more like mustard than yellow — or the lacquer refuses to cure altogether.
Together with the lacquer master I work with, we spent four years trying to produce a stable yellow. We made attempt after attempt, and each time something went wrong. Eventually we made one last panel, but when it also failed to dry we simply gave up and placed it on top of a shelf in the workshop.
Half a year later we noticed that the panel had finally cured. Miraculously, the yellow was still bright. But during those six months the surface had been exposed, and dust had settled into the still-wet lacquer.
For the lacquer master, that meant the work had failed. But for me the dust was part of the story of the work. So I persuaded him to accept the piece as it was and allow it to become part of the series.
"The Resident Colour", 2011, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 50 x 50 cm, with Mariko Nishide, private collection
The sap of the lacquer tree, when it has just been tapped, is — for a brief moment — pale and white, like diluted cream. But almost immediately it begins to change. The liquid slowly turns brown, a process driven by the enzymatic oxidation of urushiol, the main ingredient of lacquer. The transformation is so fundamental that the brown becomes a mainstay of the medium, never entirely displaced by any pigment.
"Bengara Sampler", 2024, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 65 x 65 cm, with Sergej Kirilov
Effectively, this work is a color chart from 9,000 years ago. Natural lacquer is that ancient, and bengara was one of the first pigments used with it.
"End-of-Pier", 2018 - 2019, natural lacquer on panel, stainless-steel peg, 60 x 60 cm, with Sergej Kirilov
The spontaneous gesture, the inspiration of the moment—lacquer doesn’t really work that way. What it offers instead is a kind of planned surprise. Having fun with lacquer looks like this.
to be continued