The Puppet Maker shifts focus from performance to creation, portraying the artisan who builds the Bunraku figures. Sekino saw a kinship between his own printmaking craft and the puppet maker's painstaking work. Prices generally range from $200-$600, with signed and numbered impressions most collectible.
The craftsperson who builds the Bunraku or other traditional Japanese puppet — constructing the articulated head, carving the features, assembling the body — is here shown at work on their creation. Sekino's puppet-maker subjects place the creative act at the center of the composition: the hands shaping the object that will in turn shape performance, the puppet not yet animate but already carrying the imprint of a maker's choices.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
The Puppet Maker was created by Jun'ichiro Sekino (関野準一郎).
The Puppet Maker uses Nishiki-e, Moku-hanga, and Kento, on woodblock print.
The Puppet Maker depicts craftspeople and daily life.
