Tuesday 19 November 2013

Kings and Queens

Konnichiwa - Hello!  For my Kings and Queens tag, I was inspired by Odairisama and Ohinasama, the traditional Japanese Emperor and Empress Hina dolls.  The latter are used during the Girls' Day celebration on March the 3rd, but elaborate displays which may include the emperors' court begin to appear after February the 4th.  It is believed that the dolls guard humans from bad things such as illness, so giving one to a girl means good wishes for health and happiness.  Red is considered a merry color, but it is combined with pink during this celebration due to the peach blossoms which appear at this time announcing the coming of Spring.  Food and various sweets, which may be made from peach, are an important part of this celebration.  After the holiday, the dolls must be stored away properly until the following year to avoid misfortune.  However, the original custom was to float the dolls down a river to remove bad things from humans.  This custom is still practiced in some regions, but has diminished due to the high cost of some of these Hina dolls.


I used a bookmark for my tag base, because a long rectangular panel form is often used in Japanese art.  I decorated the background with some bamboo print strips and punched flowers, which I enhanced with a micron pen.  I made my Hina doll forms using traditional origami folds, but added hand drawn faces to them and gave them their traditional accessories - a ritual sceptre for the Emperor and a fan for the Empress.  I finished my tag with an Asian character stamp and my last name written in Katakana characters, as well as a cord tie with beaded ends.

Although I've admired the Japanese culture ever since the Anglican Episcopal Bishop of Japan and his wife visited my father's diocese in Northern Mexico circa 1970, I am not an expert in this holiday.  Therefore, I read through a couple of articles before writing this post and found one by Shizu to be the most helpful.  Sayonara - Goodbye!

11 comments:

  1. Wonderful tag and composition. Very interesting too!

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  2. Very interesting post and striking tag to illustrate it

    Chrissie x

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  3. Beautiful tag and a very interesting post! Valerie

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  4. Wow, Arnoldo! We can always rely on you for an interesting post and something different!! Just fab! Carolyn xx

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  5. Hi Arnoldo, you give us a beautiful tag this week and a fascinating story to go with it :-). Thanks for sharing

    Sally

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  6. You always surprise and delight me Arnoldo and this weeks post is no exception!
    I am always in awe of anyone who creates beautiful with origami - I end up feeling that I am all thumbs :)
    Your tag is beautiful.

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  7. absolutely gorgeous and such a special way to illustrate this theme. thanks for the resource information. xo

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  8. Very original and artistic, just what I have come to expect of you Arnoldo! Very great tag. x

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  9. Wonderful idea for your tag, Arnoldo. Thanks for all the interesting information. Lovely origami dolls too.
    Jane x

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  10. Wonderful origami Arnoldo. I also love the oriental coloring and what a brilliant idea to add your name. Have a wonderful weekend :o)

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  11. You always come up with something inspired! It's lovely -- and what a lot of work you put into it. A treat for all of us!

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