My best jobs are the one’s where the client doesn’t have an exact idea in their head of what they’re looking for. They are relying on my imagination and creativity to bring something into the world that they haven’t seen before. I often think of myself as an interior designer that happens to create furniture. The space is important as well as the things that are around a piece, art on the walls, other furniture. I want things to work together and play off each other if that’s possible.
I had no idea what a butsudan was before this job. It was important In talking to the client to get an idea of their vision of the piece and for me to gain enough understanding of how they would use it. I started with an understanding of the traditional use of the butsudan as a home shrine. This one would some day hold the ashes of the clients parents. A strict buddhist might spend time everyday in a combination of prayer or meditation along with a remembrance of relatives no longer in this world. For this client I thought about the object being a beautiful thing to look at and invite thoughtfulness. Things that would be important were:
choice of wood
uniqueness of the wood
liveliness of the wood
composition of the grain and color
use of traditional japanese joinery
The piece would not be used in the traditional buddhist way. I imagined that rituals would be important. These would be things like opening the doors. Adding or replacing fresh flowers in the cabinet. Opening the door that would contain the urn. In my mind, everything around the piece should be a pleasure. For example, the pulls on the door should feel good in the hand, the hinge motion on the doors should be smooth, and the latches should be firm and solid. The number of details that will be in the piece, that I’ll be making a decision about will be… well, a lot. And truth be told, the responsibility around a piece like this can be overwhelming. You need to just eat the elephant one bite at a time.
