What are Kokeshi Dolls?

First, what are kokeshi dolls?

They are wooden dolls that are traditionally crafted by hand, but in modern times can also be made in factories. Kokeshi dolls have faces, but are characterized by their lack of arms and legs.

Is there a meaning behind them?

Some say they were given as gifts to parents of children who have passed away, and that they hold the souls of those children, others day they are symbols of hope for bountiful harvests, but the original kokeshi were simply just sold as souvenirs.

The History of Kokeshi

Although the creator of the first kokeshi is unknown, the history of kokeshi dates back to the 1800s when kijishi (woof craftsmen) sold them around Sakunami, which is a hot spring resort district in northern Japan. The kijishi took the left-over wooden blocks from plates, bowls, and other wood-crafted items and used a lathe (a machine that rotates) to sand them down into cylinders and to apply the lines of ink.

What are the different types of kokeshi?

Traditional Kokeshi

For traditional kokeshi, there are 11 official styles which are named after the place they originated from, and each have a set of rules on the shape, colour and motifs. The 11 main types of kokeshi are:

• Hijiori

• Kijiyama

• Nakanosawa

• Nanbu

• Naruko

• Sakunami

• Togatta

• Tsuchiyu

• Tsugaru

• Yajiro

• Yamagata

Below are some photos of kokeshi that I've sold in my Etsy shop. I came across all types but Nakanosawa kokeshi!

Non-Traditional Kokeshi

The non-traditional kokeshi are referred to as modern or creative kokeshi, and although they retain some of the elements of traditional kokeshi, the craftsmen of these kokeshi do not need to follow any strict rules and therefore have more freedom to be creative.

I had a tour of Oki Yasunobu's studio where him and his wife were working on kokeshi for their next show. As you can see, they take a more creative and modern approach with their motifs, even adding wooden ears to the cat kokeshi which would not be done with traditional kokeshi.

The Process

After the wood has been stripped of bark and dried, it is cut into pieces and then the head and the body are created separately.

The body is first sanded and shaped with tools on the lathe.

Then lines are formed using ink and the rotation of the lathe. To seal the ink a layer of wax is also applied.

The shape of the head is made using a chisel and then sandpaper to create a smooth and round surface.

The face of the kokeshi is always painted by hand, as well as any motifs on the body other than lines.

These process photos were from my studio tour of Seiji Yoshino's studio. Click here to see the blog I wrote with more photos of his process!