The Day a Giant Lacquer Tree Arrived in the Town of Lacquer—Memories of 1995

This is an article from the Iwate Nippo about an urushi tree found in Futatsui, Akita Prefecture, when it was installed in the Joboji Town Cultural Hall (J Hall) in Iwate Prefecture in 1995.
That year was also an important time when full-scale production and preparations for the film Princess Mononoke were underway. Akita Prefecture is said to be the model for Ashitaka's village. The beautiful vermilion color of elegant lacquerware was likely extracted from trees of this variety. However, different varieties of trees are mainstream today.
When germination rate, growth rate, amount of sap, and efficiency are prioritized above all else, and such traits are praised as superior varieties, I feel a frustrating sense of incongruity, as if it echoes past eugenic ideologies.
The original trees of this kind possess a calm, refined luster and offer excellent coloration in vermilion. When I reflect on what is lost in the shadow of efficiency, the theme of "coexistence between nature and humans" portrayed in the film continues to question us deeply today.
To previous articles