“Blue Moon,” shown here in a provided photo, is one of Naoko Fukumaru’s kintsugi artworks, based on a Persian earthenware plate from the 10th-12th century CE. Kintsugi is the 500-year-old Japanese art of repairing broken ceramics with lacquer and gold dust. According to the artist, the missing pieces are intentional, meant to convey that brokenness and emptiness have their own meaning.
Courtesy of Naoko Fukumaru
Note: This story contains descriptions of domestic abuse. If you or someone you know may be a victim of domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline by calling or texting 800-799-7233.
For many years, the Vancouver, British Columbia-based artist Naoko Fukumaru was in the business of hiding imperfections.
As a conservator at institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Detroit Institute of Arts, she worked to render flaws invisible in paintings, sculptures and other artifacts.
But the end of her 21-year marriage and the domestic violence she experienced during and after the separation pushed her to explore a very different art form.
“When I met kintsugi, I was completely broken,” Fukumaru said. “I wanted to transform my negative trauma energy to something positive and powerful. Through the art, I managed to process [that] inside of me.”
Kintsugi is the 500-year-old Japanese art of repairing broken ceramics with lacquer and gold dust. It’s meant to highlight the imperfections of a piece and celebrate its new form, rather than hiding its chips and cracks.
Fukumaru said the message of resilience and transformation echoes with the clients who bring her broken ceramics to repair through kintsugi.
“Beautiful Trauma,” shown here in a provided photo, is one of Naoko Fukumaru’s kintsugi artworks, based on a Persian terracotta jug dating from 1200-800 BCE. Kintsugi is the 500-year-old Japanese art of repairing broken ceramics with lacquer and gold dust. According to the artist, the crystals are meant to represent “the transformation of trauma into something beautiful and powerful.”
Courtesy Naoko Fukumaru
“They even say, ‘Oh, I’m so happy I broke this,’ or, ‘I’m happy my dog broke this,’” she said. “I never had this compliment when I was doing hidden restoration. So I could see healing of their suffering through this kintsugi application.”
Fukumaru’s first solo kintsugi exhibition in the U.S. is currently on display at the Portland Japanese Garden.
Fukumaru said she hopes visitors leave with a new appreciation for their own imperfections, and the knowledge that being broken does not make them worthless.
“This brokenness and emptiness has a meaning to it, and we can learn from this,” she said. “Sometimes we are completely smashed and we can’t find any more of our fragments. It’s OK because it is beautiful as it is.”
“Kintsugi: The Restorative Art of Naoko Fukumaru” runs through Jan. 27 at the Portland Japanese Garden.
Naoko Fukumaru spoke with “Think Out Loud” host Dave Miller. Click play to listen to the full conversation:
Artist and conservator Naoko Fukumaru, shown here in a provided photo, applies gold powder to a kintsugi artwork in her Vancouver studio, 2024. Fukumaru's first solo kintsugi exhibit in the U.S. will be on display at the Portland Japanese Garden through Jan. 27, 2025.
Courtesy of Naoko Fukumaru
