The Beauty of Nature Experienced Abroad

Where did Nakagawa's unique philosophy toward Zogan come from? It turns out that his experiences overseas played a major role. In particular, he was strongly influenced by Turkey.

"There's a place in Mitaka City called the Middle Eastern Cultural Center. At the time, research called 'イスラム圏の商人と職人たち (Merchants and craftsmen in the Islamic world)' was being conducted there, and I joined the research team, traveling to Turkey almost every year.

I took every chance I could to sketch. When I made a detour to Bulgaria after visiting Turkey, I was captivated by the beauty of the grasslands and forests spreading out before my eyes.

As the sun gradually set, the beautiful contrast in brightness between the western and eastern skies made a vivid, lasting impression on me."

This scene became the inspiration for his piece, "重ね象嵌朧銀花器『草原の森』." By using materials like silver and Shibuichi (四分一) —the latter being an alloy of silver and copper—he superbly expressed the delicate light and shade, capturing the passage of time in this work.