Dry Lacquer

The Craft

Lacquer. Cloth. Form.

Dry-lacquer sculpture brings lacquer, textile and a supporting form together. Its construction becomes clearer when we look beneath the surface.

A row of Buddhist sculptures in a workshop, showing reddish-brown surfaces and a gilded figure in the foreground.

Two ways of building.

A wooden core can remain inside a figure. A removable model can instead leave a hollow body of cloth and lacquer. Internal braces may also survive in a hollow work.

Technical examination of early Chinese sculpture ↗

The materials.

Natural lacquer flowing from a cloth-wrapped stick above a vessel.

Lacquer

Natural lacquer acts as a binding and coating material. Layering and finishing contribute to the sculpture’s surface.

Gloved hands cutting coarse woven textile in a sculpture workshop.

Textile

A technical study identified hemp in four early Chinese sculptures. The official Tiantai craft record specifies ramie. These terms describe different fibres.

Artisans applying a finish to a Buddhist sculpture.

Ground & decoration

Fillers help shape and smooth a body. Recipes differ: examined early works contain bone filler; the Tiantai record describes mineral and tile powders.

Early sculpture: material analysis ↗Tiantai: official craft record ↗

The craft in motion.

Watch the materials take shape.

A process, in outline.

A schematic outline of hollow construction, grouped into five stages.

  1. 01

    Model

    Establish the shape on a model.

  2. 02

    Layer

    Build up the body with cloth, lacquer and appropriate ground materials.

  3. 03

    Remove

    Remove the temporary model once the body is ready.

  4. 04

    Refine

    Adjust the modelling and smooth the surface.

  5. 05

    Finish

    Complete the surface with lacquer, colour or gilding as the work requires.

Procedures vary by workshop and period, so this is not a recipe for any particular sculpture. The official Tiantai record describes its own craft as 48 stages, from modelling through ground layers, ramie cloth, lacquer, polishing, vermilion and gilding. Read the source ↗