Ed Ryland, Oomugi - a Japanese whisky shrine (WORLD 2024)

Photos:

Ed Ryland @justplaneed

Country:

United Kingdom

Japan has deeply influenced my woodworking journey, which was ignited a few years ago by a visit to a hand-tool museum in Kobe and numerous explorations of wooden temples and shrines. It felt natural to take that approach and aesthetic to the design of a whisky cabinet to capture the reverential, precious, and often intimate act of drinking a beautiful whisky. How can a cabinet elevate that experience? The concept draws from two sources: a late 19th-century piece by British Arts and Crafts architect-designer, Ernest Gimson; and a wardrobe showcasing the intricate Japanese marquetry technique 'yosegi-zaiku.' This method, which forms mesmerising patterns by layering and cutting wood blocks, is central to the cabinet's design. Named 'Oomugi,' meaning barley in Japanese, the piece's detailing is inspired by the cultivation of barley essential to whisky making. Cherry and sycamore were used both as contrasting woods and to represent the seasons in Japan, which is famous for its cherry blossoms, or ‘sakura’, in spring and red acer leaves, or ‘momiji’, in autumn. The cabinet also features psychedelic abstractions of the barley-growing process both inside and out, highlighted by an ambitious 'yosegi-zaiku' pattern on the door fronts. A sycamore-veneered panel also illuminates the central 'dais,' with additional marquetry representing barley sheaths radiating from this point inside the doors. This meticulous design transforms whisky drinking into a transcendent experience—an act of worship.

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