福岡県八女市にある松延工芸は、創業時から木と竹だけで作る手作りの桶を制作している、1959年創業の桶屋である。今、九州で昔ながらの桶をつくるのは、松延工芸のみ。今回のプロジェクトでは、貴重な伝統技術を受け継ぐ三代目の英雄さんとともに、赤杉を使った風呂桶を作った。

材料｜杉、ステンレス
製作｜松延英雄（松延工芸）

現在作られている一般的な木の風呂には、ヒノキかサワラである。密度が高く、水に強く強度があるためだと言われているが、手桶やおひつは杉でつくられることが多い。それではなぜ杉では風呂桶をつくらないのか、という問いに対する英雄さんの答えは「木の風呂といえば檜」というイメージが強いだけで、杉で風呂桶をつくれない理由はない、というものだった。それでは杉でどう風呂をつくるのが良いか、という問いには「赤身の杉でつくった風呂が一番良い」という答え。杉の赤身には油分が多いため水に強く、柔らかいため加工もしやすい。

ヒノキやサワラでは硬くて曲線が出せないため、箱型しか作ることができないが、杉だと手桶やおひつのように、曲線を出すことができる。伝統的な製法で桶をつくり続ける松延工芸だからこそ実現できるものをと考え、楕円の風呂桶をつくることにした。

Red Cedar Bath

Matsunobu Kogei is a business based in Yame, Fukuoka which has operated crafting handmade buckets using nothing but wood and bamboo. They have done this since the shop opened in 1959. Matsunobu Kogi is the only place in Kyushu still making these wooden buckets as they were always made. For this project, we collaborated with Eiyu Matsunobu, third generation inheritor of this valued craft, to make a bath of red cedar.

These days, wooden bath tubs are typically made of cypress. It is said that this is due to its density and water resistant qualities. Buckets and steamed rice containers, on the other hand, are often made from cedar.

So why don’t we try making a bath tub from cedar?

When we we asked Eiyu why there are no cedar bath tubs, he said it was simply due to the strong notion that if you were going to make a wooden bath tub, you had to use cypress. But that’s no reason you couldn’t make a cedar one if you wanted, he said. When we asked what type of cedar we should use, he answered “a bath made with red cedar would be best.” The red parts of cedar wood have more oil, making them more resistant to water. They are softer as well, making them easier to work with.

Cypress is harder and cannot be bent, which is why wooden bathtubs can only be made in a box shape. But with cedar, the wood can be bent to a curve like it is with wooden buckets and steamed rice containers.

We went with a rounded oval shape for the tub, a design that Matsunobu Kogei, in their continued craft of making cedar buckets, were especially primed to deliver.