The Japanese people have always enjoyed the changing of the seasons by using all five senses.
They have lived through finding sentiments in the repetitive everyday life: recognising the subtle changes in the colour of the sky (sight), appreciating the taste of seasonal food (taste), feeling the elegance in the sound of insects (hearing), knowing the coolness of a stream (touch), and being fascinated by the scent of a flower that has started to bloom (smell).

The crafts that have accompanied the Japanese way of life have also been deepened with the spirit of the seasons.
For example, compared to ceramics and lacquer ware, glass crafts have an image of being “imported”. But the materiality of glass, reminiscent of water and ice, has been used to make Furin wind-bells, a summer tradition, since the Edo period.
Since glass, like porcelain, contains siliceous components, it makes a beautiful, clear and high-pitched sound when we ping it with our finger. People of the Edo period were clever enough to realise that glass wind-bells, together with their visual effect, could also bring a sense of coolness to the ears.

Today, it is even hotter than it was in the Edo period.
In the meantime, the Japanese people’s way of life has completely changed, but the lyricism of enjoying wind-bells to cool off in summer is still alive.

The wind-bell in the picture was made by Hiroaki Sakata, a glass-blowing artist based in Toyama Prefecture.
The scaly pattern that covers the whole piece was created by a decorative technique using the metal mould. The melted glass is placed in the patterned mould prior to blowing to create the beautiful shading on the surface.
The moulds used by Mr Sakata have travelled from Venice, the home of glass art, to a far eastern island country.
It is amazing to think that such a tool coming from different country plays an active role in making wind-bells, which bring a Japanese sentiment.

If we think about it, even the ceramics called “Japanese tableware” now were originally imported. They were customised by us, Japanese people, over hundreds of years to suit our lifestyle, and are now recognised as a traditional craft.
If this is the case, then glass crafts, which came from Europe, may come to be recognised as a traditional Japanese craft that fits the five senses of the Japanese people over the next few hundred years.
The sentiments of glass wind-bells in hot summer will continue to soothe our eyes, ears and hearts for a long time to come.