Komao Hayashi

Komao Hayashi ( Japanese 林 駒 夫 , Hayashi Komao ; born September 22, 1936 in Kyōto ) is a Japanese doll maker who was named a living national treasure in 2002 in the category: doll manufacture .

Life

After graduating from high school, Hayashi first learned his craft from the doll maker Menya Shōzō XII. (1910–1994) and then by Kitazawa Nyoi, an artisan who made Nō masks.

Hayashi specializes in the production of Tōso dolls ( 桐 塑 人形 ), which are used for the Hina Matsuri . Its production from paulownia wood ( 桐 ) goes back to the Edo period and it is today declared as an important intangible cultural asset of Japan. He is also chairman of the "Japanese Society for Crafts" ( 日本 工 芸 会 ; Nihon kōgeikai ) with the award he was honored in 1973. In 2004, Hayashi was also awarded the Order of Merit on the Violet Ribbon .

Exhibitions

• 2007 Miyabi no toki Hayashi Komao-ten ( 雅 の 刻 林 駒 夫 展 ) in Shimogyō-ku

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} 林 駒 夫 . In: デ ジ タ ル 版 日本人 名 大 辞典 + Plus at kotobank.jp. Retrieved April 14, 2014 (Japanese). 
2. ↑ 桐 塑 人形 . In: Cultural Heritage Online. Cultural Affairs Office , accessed April 14, 2014 (Japanese). 
3. ↑ 林 駒 夫 Komao Hayashi. Gallery Sakuranoki, 2011, accessed April 14, 2014 (Japanese). 
4. ↑ 人間 国宝 の 林 駒 夫 さ ん が 個 展 下 京 独創性 豊 か な 30 点 並 ぶ . Kyoto Shimbun, October 17, 2007; accessed April 14, 2014 . 

Web links

• Collective of authors: 桐 塑 人形 林 駒 夫 の わ ざ . (PDF) Retrieved April 14, 2014 (Japanese, small sequence of images showing Hayashi making Tōso dolls).