Affordable Namiki "Maki-e" - Nippon Art "Sharaku"

[mild7]

True maki-e involves sprinkling of gold dust, but Namiki's Nippon Art range comprises of sensibly priced designs which they market as "Hira Maki-e"... where the design has a flat appearance as opposed to the cloudy/burnished appearance of "Togidashi Maki-e" (see my other post on the Yukari Royale).

Most of the designs on the Nippon Art pens are almost kitschy... geishas, Mount Fuji, interpretations of Hokusai's giant wave etc. The designs also appear to be largely screen printed... like you'd find on say, miso soup bowls etc. I had several Nippon Art pens but for these reasons I eventually sold most of them off.

The one Nippon Art pen that I ended up keeping was "Sharaku", which features Sharaku's iconic ukiyo-e print of Otani Oniji. While you can find geisha and Mount Fuji prints on cups, ballpoint pens and almost anything you'd care for, the Sharaku print, at least on a pen, is relatively unique.

The artwork on the pen is fantastic, and captures the essence of Sharaku's print of Otani Oniji as Edobei.... hands open and ready to grab, full of malice.

The nib is pretty and features a decal of Mount Fuji. It writes well like all pilot/Namiki. But to me, that has always been a secondary concern for Maki-e pens. :)

The Nippon Art pens featuring Ukiyo-e (pictures of the floating world) which includes the Sharaku are no longer in production.

Enjoy the pictures!