Seal Engraver, Mitamura kian, Receives Medal with Yellow Ribbon Zen-themed solo exhibition in Ginza, May 15-18

Mitamura Seal Shop (Chuo-ku, Osaka; Representative: Kaoru Mita-mura), run by Ki-an Mita-mura, a contemporary master craftsman and recipient of the Medal with Yellow Ribbon, will hold a solo exhibition at Gallery SIACCA in Ginza, Tokyo.

With the usage of seals drastically decreasing, more and more companies in the same business are going out of business. The Mitamura Seal Shop is also facing a very difficult situation in terms of making and selling seals. However, when we held "Hanko Osaka no Bungaku" (Literature of Hanko and Osaka), a private exhibition of hand-drawn seal designs, in Osaka last year, we received more than 200 visitors despite it being our first exhibition, and it was covered in various newspapers and on TV. The warm response we received prompted us to hold a crowdfunding campaign from the end of November to December last year to further promote "HANKO KIAN," the Hanko character design brand created by Kian. The crowdfunding campaign raised over 900,000 yen from 55 people, making it possible for us to hold this solo exhibition in Tokyo.

The theme of this solo exhibition is "Hanko and Zen Words. The works will be hand-painted with acrylic paints. At the last exhibition, many visitors were surprised to hear that the letter designs on the seals were so gentle and delicate, and that they touched their hearts. Many of them were surprised. Zen words have long encouraged and encouraged the hearts of many people with their meanings. By expressing such Zen words with characters designed by the artist with all his heart and soul, we hope that more people will enjoy the thoughts and feelings contained in Zen words and the gracefully dancing character designs of the seals.

Exhibition Web page] https://exhibition.mitamura-inshouten.com/

Title of the private exhibition "Hanko Zen Words

Period: May 15-18, 2024 12:00-19:00 *Last day until 17:00

Place: Gallery SIACCA

　　 https://www.siacca.com/gallery/

　　　Sound Valley Building, B1F, 2-9-16 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo

These are some of the works from the solo exhibition. Can you read what the Zen word is?

Syujinko

The image of the solo exhibition: Kissako

Exhibition image: "Hougetyaku

Why did you choose Zen words as the theme?

Graph of the number of members

Above is a graph of the number of members of the All Japan Seal Industry Association. The number of members is decreasing rapidly and is on the decline. The number of applicants for the national proficiency test for seal engraving is also decreasing and is being considered for abolition. In the midst of digitalization, it is difficult to be at peace with such a future. It was Zen words that gave me a way forward from an enlightened perspective. I believe that Zen words resonate with the hearts of modern people because of their inherent universal power that is not influenced by the currents of the times. Therefore, I wanted to express Zen words in the design of seal production, which I inherited from my predecessors. The works in this exhibition were produced under the encouragement of the teachings of my predecessors.

The private exhibition held last year and crowdfunding

Hanko Osaka no Bungaku" (Literature of Hanko Osaka) will be held in Chuo-ku, Osaka in May 2023. 215 visitors.

Works from the previous exhibition

View of the last solo exhibition

Comments from visitors

It was very beautiful and artistic.

I was overwhelmed by the interesting layout of the seal script.

I was overwhelmed by the interesting layout of the seal script.

I felt beauty, warmth, amity, gentleness, and refinement.

I was impressed by the high quality of the design, which I usually do not see.

I was impressed by the high quality of the design, which I have never seen before.

Crowd Funding

The design of the Hanko is an art that is seen by many people.

Original seal design brand "HANKO KIAN"

Period: November 27 to December 24, 2023

Target Amount: 500,000 yen

Total support: 901,500 yen

180% achieved

https://camp-fire.jp/projects/view/715000

Thoughts on holding a solo exhibition in Ginza, Tokyo

I have been a craftsman for a long time and have lived there with pride. It has been my greatest pleasure to see the moment when a customer takes a product I have created and smiles. I had no doubt in my mind that I would pass this on to the next generation and live out the rest of my life. However, social trends blew away my modest thoughts. Ginza is the very center of Japanese culture, with its retro-modern, relaxed atmosphere and the latest items and information. The irresistible currents of society created an unexpected turn of events when I decided to hold my solo exhibition in Ginza. The beauty of seals that I express is not something that I have acquired solely on my own, but something that I inherited from my predecessors. There are those who follow in my footsteps, who are still in an insatiable struggle to find beauty in seals. By borrowing the power of the Zen language, which teaches universal truths, and expressing them in my own way with the techniques I have inherited from my predecessors, I hope to provide encouragement to those who are struggling in today's society and to future generations of engineers. I would be happy if I could convey even a little of these thoughts to you.

Mitamura Kian, born in 1959 in Osaka City, Japan.

Hiroan Mitamura

Mitamura Seal Shop

The owner of the store, who had no connection with seals at all, was impressed by a seal character design at his wife's family's seal store, and became fascinated by the fun of seal making and became a seal engraver. Later, after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, he opened his own business in his hometown, Osaka, called Mitamura Seal Shop. He makes his own original products such as "Kian's rubber stamp" and distributes them to art supply stores nationwide.

Outline of the store

Location ： 1-1-6-103 Uchihiranomachi, Chuo-ku, Osaka

Representative: Kaoru Mitamura (pseudonym: Ki-an)

Business : Manufacturing and sales of seals

Establishment : 1996

HP : https://mitamura-inshouten.com/

Store Image