家族で創るミニチュア・ドールハウスの世界

[From September Issue 2010]

Mini Chuubouan
KAWAI Yukio and KAWAI Tomoko

For the last 30 years KAWAI Yukio has been running the small factory that he took over from his father. In addition, he and his wife Tomoko also manage Mini Chuubouan, a small atelier housed in a rebuilt part of the factory. At this atelier, they produce and sell miniature kitchen utensils for dollhouses. Yukio is in charge of producing machined ironware while his wife is responsible for hand-making fake food and other small articles out of clay. Their customers come from all over Japan.

It was because of Tomoko’s hobby that they turned part of the small factory into an atelier. “I’d been attending a dollhouse-making class, and I always wanted miniature pots made of copper, just like real ones,” recalls Tomoko. “When I asked my husband to make them, he agreed to, saying that we can try by making use of our traditional skills.” “Incorporating all of her requests, I made sample pieces one after another, and it took me a few months to produce exactly what she wanted,” Yukio remembers.

The finished products were made of real copper or stainless steel, and their designs resembled those of real pots. Those miniatures were so well received by Tomoko’s fellow students, that they were soon flooded with orders. “Due to the recession, the amount of work at the factory had been declining, but we got busy with the dollhouse thing as if it was our main business,” Yukio says with a laugh.

Most of their pieces are no bigger than a 10 yen coin, and Yukio makes them while wearing special magnifying glasses. He pays attention to every little detail by making patterns, smoothing out the surface and attaching the handles, but the machines he uses are mostly outdated ones that he inherited from his father. Yukio believes that his method adds more warmth to them, compared to the ones created with modern computerized equipment.

Now even their daughter Asami, a fine art college graduate, is involved in their business. “In the beginning, she was just helping us out, but I guess she found it interesting,” says Yukio. “Now the three of us talk about things together when we are working or attending events.” Just like her mother, Asami also makes food and small articles by hand out of clay, and enjoys joining her parents at various organized events.

Dollhouse artists and collectors can be found all over the world. This past April, Mini Chuubouan participated for the first time in an event held in Chicago, and came away inspired by dollhouse miniaturists from other countries. “We would like to keep creating items that can be highly praised not only in Japan but in other countries as well,” says Yukio.

Tomoko says that the good problem they are now facing is that they are so busy that they don’t have enough time to create new items. She adds that their website receives an average of about 2,000 hits daily, and on weekends, when many people visit their shop or they participate in events, they just get too busy to do anything else. Despite this inconvenience, Yukio says that they don’t intend to hire additional help because they only want to produce pieces that they are completely satisfied with. “As a family, we understand each other and that makes the creative process work. But the most important thing is to make pieces that will please our customers.”

Mini Chuubouan

[2010年9月号掲載記事]

ミニ厨房庵
河合行雄さん、河合朝子さん

河合行雄さんは父親から引き継いだ町工場を経営しておよそ30年になります。現在、工場の一部を改築した「ミニ厨房庵」を妻の朝子さんと共に経営しています。この工房で、ミニチュア・ドールハウス用の調理器具を製造、販売しています。機械を使って作る金物類は行雄さんが、粘土を使って手で作る食品や小物類は朝子さんが担当しています。お客は全国から来ます。

町工場を工房にしたきっかけは、朝子さんの趣味でした。「ドールハウスの教室に通っているのですが、本物のような銅製のお鍋がほしかったんです」と朝子さんは振り返ります。「夫に頼むと、今までの技術を活かして挑戦してみようと引き受けてくれました」。「要望を聞き入れて試作を重ね、数ヵ月かかってできました」と行雄さんは話します。

完成品は、銅やステンレス製で、実物と同じ作りです。朝子さんのドールハウス仲間にも評判になり、注文が相次ぎました。「不景気で工場の仕事が減っていましたが、ドールハウスの方が本業のように忙しくなってしまいました」と行雄さんは笑います。

作品は10円玉硬貨程度の小さなものが多く、行雄さんは特別なルーペをかけて製作します。型をとったり、削ったり、取っ手をつけたりと細かい部分までていねいに作りますが、使う機械はすべて父親の代から受け継いだ旧式のものばかり。コンピューターによる最新式のものよりも、作品に温かみが出せると、行雄さんは信じています。

今は、美術系の大学を卒業した娘のあさみさんも製作にたずさわっています。「最初は手伝う程度でしたが、面白くなったみたいですね。今では3人で話し合いながら、作品作りやイベントに出展しています」と行雄さんは話します。あさみさんは朝子さんと同じく粘土で食品や小物類を作り、イベントにも参加します。

ドールハウスは世界中に作家や収集家がいます。ミニ厨房庵も、4月にアメリカ・シカゴで行われたドールハウスのイベントに初めて出展し、各国の作家たちからも刺激を受けました。「日本だけでなく、各国で認められるような作品をこれからも作っていきたいです」と行雄さんは言います。

今の悩みは忙しすぎて作品を作る時間が足りないと朝子さんは話します。ホームページのアクセス数は一日平均約2,000件、週末は多くの人が店を訪れ、イベントへの出展もあり、その対応に追われています。それでも、人手は増やさず、納得のいく作品だけを送り出したいと行雄さんは言います。「私たち家族はお互いを理解して作品を作っています。お客様に喜んでいただける作品を作ることが一番大事なんです」。

ミニ厨房庵

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