Techniques of Applying Haku

All of the techniques I will mention here were already used by 1164, as seen in Heike Nokyo Sutra (National Treasure) and what is amazing is that people still use them today.

  Painting

First, and probably the most familiar type to Westerners, is Kindei or “gold paint” in English. A mixture of thinly diluted solution of gold and Nikawa (animal glue) is used with a brush just like paint.

 Using it as a Canvas

Second is Haku-Oshi, in which Kinpaku is fixed directly onto paper and other materials with Nikawa. Pictures are usually painted on the top, as seen in the artwork of Rinpa School.

  Producing Patterns

Next is Kirikane, where a multiple of gold leaf sheets made from gold of the finest quality are bound together by heating with charcoal fire, and cut into small strips with a bamboo knife. By using two brushes, one with Nikawa at its tip and the other to fix, these strips are then made into different shapes (often geometrical) and applied to different items. This type is seen in Buddhist art.

  Adding an Airy Touch

Finally, the fourth type is the Sunago that is used for a variety of paper items such as Byobu (folding screens), Fusuma (sliding screens) ,  and Emakimono (picture scrolls). Kinpaku made into fine powder by being filtered through a tool called Sunagozutsu (a bamboo cylinder) and being stirred with a brush, is sprinkled over different items.  These minute particles of gold dust are often used to represent space and time in the Japanese art. When appearing in shapes of haze and clouds in Emakimono, it is telling the viewers there is a lapse of time, change of scene or spatial depth. The word Sunago means both the technique and the pulverized gold leaf. Despite the rise of modern technology, there are still craftsmen who specialize in the making of Sunago with the same old techniques.