S1 EP1: Navigating A Career In Art

Welcome to the Heritage Meets Modernity Podcast where we explore how history, art, literature, and craft intersect with culture and contemporary life.  In this debut episode we get to know more about Sophia, and how she is navigating a career shift together with the challenges she has faced along this journey. We talk about how she got into the world of urushi and maki-e, and why she made the decision to leave an academic career in science to pursue art. We also discuss the reality of commission work and the difficulties faced when working as an independent artist. Chapters: 00:00:06 Introduction 00:01:26 Developing an interest in art 00:10:25 The intersection of art and science 00:13:00 Getting started in urushi lacquer art 00:18:09 Why quit academia? 00:24:20 Taking on commissions and navigating work as an independent artist 00:29:55 Returning to Tokyo for formal maki-e lessons 00:33:14 What's the value of the apprenticeship system? 00:38:18 The struggle with balancing commission work 00:42:51 The ongoing question about the sustainability of art 00:51:11 Transitioning to work with Kyuseido full time 00:55:40 Changes to the relationship with art This is a Kyuseido production. Find out more on our website: https://www.kyuseidotokyo.com/   Kyuseido's Library of Knowledge: https://www.kyuseidotokyo.com/libraryofknowledge Urushi Notes: https://www.urushinotes.com/ Maki-e School Ginza: https://www.makieshi.com/    Follow us to keep up to date with new episodes!  Instagram: Kyuseido YouTube: Kyuseido   Opening and Closing Music: Song: Dawn Composer: Sappheiros Website: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5ZVHXQZAIn9WJXvy6qn9K0 License: Creative Commons (BY 3.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Music powered by BreakingCopyright: https://breakingcopyright.com