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Samurai Signatures KAOU 花押

8/13/2018

4 Comments

 
Samurai of a certain status possessed a KAOU or Signature that was more than just a way of signing their name. It became a seal of authority, and in the Takeda Clan was refined to a high level of design, a talisman rich in symbolism. On August 4 we participated in an event at the Takeda Shrine, and from our booth I designed and painted Samurai Signatures for over 40 people who visited the booth. People of all ages lined up to get their name designed as a Samurai Signature. I also designed my own KAOU, based on my calligraphy name, 恒来 (Kourai).
4 Comments
Showkat
7/18/2019 11:14:31 am

My name signature in samurai words

Reply
Lucille Smith
3/5/2022 07:16:29 am

Hello how you? I'm Lucille and wanting to ask you if you had the time to translate some art work and with seals that I have.
Lucille Smith

Reply
William Reed
3/5/2022 08:12:29 am

Thank you for your request, but I'm afraid that my schedule is packed. In case your are interested, I have a book on Calligraphy coming out soon, with a blog for the book at: http://songofthebrush.weebly.com

Reply
Dustin Leclair link
12/15/2022 03:38:02 am

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    Picture
    Picture

    A poem is born, or reborn?

    A piece of calligraphy comes to life. Short version.

    May 1987?
    My teacher Morioka Koshu paints a Tehon for our monthly Shodo magazine in the Sogeikai in the 1980s, and of course I have kept them all as a treasure.

    Feb 2017
    30 years later I meet Rogier Uitenboogaart in the mountains of Kochi at Yusuhara, where he himself has been making Japanese Washi paper by hand for 30 years!

    April 2017
    Almost exactly 30 years after I first saw the Tehon shown here, my friend Iwamoto-san at iWeave kindly presents me with the work I painted in February, wonderfully mounted on a scroll, which now hangs in my office.

    Here is my translation of the the Chinese poem:

    Laughing in the Spring breeze
    The dancer swirls in veils of silk.
    This is the time to drink up!
    How can you leave now,
    When we have hardly begun?


    I am not sure who wrote the original Chinese poem, but I have an idea that it was 白居易 Bai_Juyi, a Tang Dynasty poet from about 1200 years ago.

    A poem is born, and reborn across time and many communication platforms.

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bai_Juyi
    ​

    Author

    William Reed is a full time professor at iCLA (International College of Liberal Arts) Yamanashi Gakuin University in Kofu City, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. He is a 7th-dan in Aikido, and a Shihan in both Shodo and Nanba Jutsu. He teaches these arts at iCLA, in addition to a course on Spiritual Dimensions and Traditions in the Japanese Martial Arts. Detailed Profile on the About Page.

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