Japanese Art, Friday, Period Two

[shiroi_tiger]

This week, the classroom's setup hadn't changed all that much from the week before. A low-set table and some cushions to sit on. But instead of paper sitting on the table, there were bowls of soil and mud from various locations around the island, another bowl with water, and a few hand-towels, enough for everybody. In the center of the table, there was a small dish, with several polished spheres sitting on it.

"This week," Nathan said, smirking faintly, "we're going to be polishing dirt."

Polishing dirt, forming glossy spheres out of it, one of those.

"I'm going to preface this class by saying that you won't finish your project in the time we have available today," he continued. "Dorodango - literally 'mud dumpling' - is a project that requires patience. Hours and hours of patience."

So it was probably a testimony to how much spare time Nathan had on his hands that there were like seven of the things on the dish in the middle of the table, right?

"I'm going to take you through the beginning stages this week, though. If anybody is interested in actually finishing their dorodango, they're welcome to leave with a printed copy of the instructions, or just stay after class to continue working on their mud ball up to the resting point."

He reached in to one of the bowls to grab himself a comfortable handful of mud, and started working it in his hands.

"Step one," he said, still looking somewhat amused, "squeeze out the excess water, and work your handful of mud into a sphere."

Get to it, students. You were performing the ancient Japanese children's art of basically making shiny round mud pies. Weren't you glad you took this class?

Comments

Sign In

[shiroi_tiger]

A little messily!

Re: Sign In

[spell_chucker]

Khadgar

Re: Sign In

[cracksmostly]

Merrill

Lecture

[shiroi_tiger]

In which Nathan talks to you about what literally started as a Japanese children's 'playing in the mud' game.

Japanese children making dorodango were apparently far more patient than he'd ever been in his youth.

Work on Your Dorodango!

[shiroi_tiger]

Grab a comfortably sized handful of mud, and squeeze the excess water out of it while shaping it into a ball. The trick here, as Nathan is narrating as he works on his own, isn't to try to make a polished ball directly from the get-go. The trick is to focus on making it into a sphere.

After that, the next thirty or forty minutes are going to be spent trying to make that sphere as perfect as possible. Hold it in one hand, sprinkle dry soil on it, and then rub it off again. Try not to overdo it, though. Balls of mud are not exactly known for their structural stability.

If you end up with a smooth-looking (not yet polished) sphere, congratulations. You've done everything you can do for the time being, and it's time to let your sphere rest and dry on those hand towels that were provided.

... You didn't think he'd brought those along for you to clean the dirt from your hands with, did you?

Re: Work on Your Dorodango!

[spell_chucker]

Khadgar was pretty sure it would be cheating if he used magic to help make the sphere into a perfect shape, and it was kind of fun to willingly get his hands dirty. His sphere was looking a little like an egg at the moment, but it was getting rounder by the minute, really.

Re: Work on Your Dorodango!

[cracksmostly]

Dalish children had a long-standing tradition of playing with dirt themselves, but nothing quite as elaborate as this. Merrill might have been having a little too much fun working with the mud.

Talk to Algren

[shiroi_tiger]

He's made more than a few of these with Higen back in Japan. He missed Higen.

Re: Talk to Algren

[sharp_man]

Once Hannibal had heard Nathan was teaching Japanese art, he simply had to drop by and see what they were learning.

He'd also brought a book of Japanese poetry and a small plate of sushi. He liked to be prepared.

He gave Algren a proper bow. Then saw what the students were working on and chuckled.

Re: Talk to Algren

[shiroi_tiger]

Algren, hands full of mud, glanced up at Hannibal and gave a little grin. Yeah, he wasn't going to be reaching for a book or for the sushi any time in the near future.

"Dr. Lecter," he said, nodding his welcome from where he was seated. "Come in, make yourself comfortable."

Play in the mud?

Re: Talk to Algren

[sharp_man]

Amused, Hannibal set the book and plate aside carefully, removed his shoes, and sat at the table, reaching for some reddish mud. "What made you decide upon this particular art?"

Re: Talk to Algren

[shiroi_tiger]

Nathan smiled wryly at that.

"I suppose I ought to say that this is meant to be a lesson about how beauty can be found in the most unlikely of places, or perhaps it's some manner of metaphor for how patience can pay off in unexpected ways, but," he chuckled a little, "really, I just remember making them with a young man I know in Japan, back when he was younger."

Re: Talk to Algren

[sharp_man]

Hannibal smiled. "I made them a few times when I was younger, too. They're good for occupying your hands and learning fine control while you occupy your mind with other things. What did your students think of it?"

Re: Talk to Algren

[heroic_jawline]

"So...mud pies," Steve teased from the doorway.

Re: Talk to Algren

[shiroi_tiger]

"You don't like mud pies?" Nathan turned a grin up to Steve from where he was seated, hand full of mud. "You should give it a try, Steve. Maybe you'll enjoy it."

Mud polishing was weirdly therapeutic.

Re: Talk to Algren

[heroic_jawline]

"I loved 'em when I was five," Steve said. "Haven't really thought about them since."

Re: Talk to Algren

[shiroi_tiger]

"Well, then you're missing out," Nathan chuckled. "This is a fine art, you know, taught to me by only the finest five-year-old master of the form."

Higen was significantly older than that, now.

Still.

Re: Talk to Algren

[heroic_jawline]

Steve laughed. "Well, it's good to know age doesn't limit artistic mastery."

Re: Talk to Algren

[sharp_man]

Hannibal nodded hello to Steve and shifted over in case he wanted to sit. "Come to join us?"

Re: Talk to Algren

[heroic_jawline]

"Thank you," Steve said as he just now noticed this comment, fail, me.

Re: Talk to Algren

[sharp_man]

"You're welcome," Hannibal said. "Are you interested in Japanese art, or do you simply enjoy playing in the mud?"

[No worries!]

Talk to the TA

[shiroi_tiger]

When she tags in!

Re: Talk to the TA

[ldymacgyver]

Daphne was not against getting her hands dirty, but she was a little bemused about this project. She had never heard of anything like this before.

OOC

[shiroi_tiger]

What I wouldn't give to have just the time of day to play around with something like this.

Re: OOC

[sharp_man]

Eesh, right?

Then again, I'd probably keep trying to read things on my phone, and I'd end up with a muddy phone, so.