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kyougenmen@‹¶Œ¾–Ê
KEY WORD :@art history / sculptures
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Masks used for kyougen ‹¶Œ¾ plays. Kyougen is a comic theatre form, which together with the more serious *nou ”\, was known as sarugaku ‰ŽŠy (monkey music) during the Muromachi period. About 50 plays in the kyougen repertoire have masked characters, and there are about 30 different types of masks. As in nou theatre, the form of each type of mask is specified by tradition, but carvers of kyougen masks have a greater degree of freedom to vary features and expression. Masks are used to play deities like the god of fortune *fuku-no-kami •Ÿ‚Ì_, demons *buaku •ˆ«, and some human roles such as old men *ooji ‘c•ƒ, old nuns *ama “ò, and young women *oto ‰³. There are also animal masks including the badger tanuki ’K, fox *kitsune ŒÏ and monkey *saru ‰Ž, who are sometimes very realistically carved. Kyougen is usually performed in conjunction with nou providing a light-hearted interlude to serious nou plays, and the expressions of kyougen masks are designed to be a complete contrast to their nou counterparts. They can be droll, rustic, good-humoured, clumsily lopsided or cross-eyed, familiarly realistic or eccentric. Gods and demons show endearing human foibles, while young women have puffy round cheeks or stick out their tongues. Kyougen masks were carved from wood; the back of the mask was often lacquered, and multiple layers of *gofun ŒÓ•² (usually powdered oyster-shell) mixed with animal glue *nikawa äP, were applied to the face before painting. The most common wood was Japanese cypress hinoki •O, although other woods such as Judas tree katsura Œj, magnolia hou-no-ki –p‚Ì–Ø and paulownia kiri ‹Ë were sometimes used. Katsura had the advantages of being strong, lightweight, and taking paint well. However, it exuded a resin which could seep out and damage the surface of the mask. Some masks such as that of *daikoku ‘å• and *noborihige “o•E have implanted horse hair, and demons often have metal eyes and teeth. Kyougenmen are smaller than *gigakumen ŠêŠy–Ê and *bugakumen •‘Šy–Ê; they fit in front of the face without covering the head. Since the masks are sometimes taken on and off on stage as part of the performance, it is important that they are small enough to be held in one hand. Many masks from the 16-19c are preserved today and can be seen in actors' private collections, such as those of the Shigeyama –ÎŽR and Nomura –쑺 families, in museums like the Tokyo National Museum, or in temples and shrines like Mibudera p¶Ž› in Kyoto.
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