“Funori” has arrived ! This time, I would like to introduce you to Funori. Funori is a glue made from seaweed that has a weak adhesive force and has been passed down since ancient times. Ours is a funori that uses only “Mafunori” off the coast of Tsushima, Nagasaki Prefecture, which is evaluated as the highest quality in Japan. Harvest is from March to May in spring, and is dried in the sun in the summer. The drying process is in the Ise region of Mie Prefecture. When the red color of the seaweed becomes dry and black, it is exposed to fresh water to remove salt and color. After that, the fibers of funori are subdivided with a natural alkaline solvent and processed for easy gelatinization. Completed by drying in the sun again. This is also one of the blessings of nature. I just admire the wisdom of our predecessors.
The features of Funori are as follows: (1) The adhesive strength is weak and the glue dissolves in water, so the glue can be removed without burdening the paper over time. (2) A supple and flexible finish is possible by finishing the hanging scroll with a Funori glue. Due to such characteristics, Funori has traditionally used to make hanging scrolls , restoration of cultural properties, restoration of paintings, calligraphy, paper materials, etc. There is not many opportunity to use funori these days, but I would like all the Art related person to give it a try.
