japanese illustrator chiharu sakazaki’s penguin is transformed into handcrafted face brush

illustrator chiharu sakazaki’s penguin character has been transformed into the motif for a face brush, handcrafted in kumano, a japanese town known for the production of brushes called ‘kumanofude’. the brush, which is available through HKDS (hong kong department store) is created by craftsmen using two colors of raw hair. carefully put together without cutting them, the tips form the penguin’s face at the very end of the brush. 

all images courtesy of HKDS

the penguin character can be found in chiharu sakazaki‘s 2001 illustration for the suica, the japanese rechargable contactless smart card by JR east. now, the penguin has been used as the motif for a kumanofude face brush, sold by HKDS. the brush is hand-crafted by craftsmen in kumano town, hiroshima prefecture, one of the most well-known brush-producing areas of japan, whose industry was designated as ‘traditional handicrafts’ by the minister of economy, trade and industry in 1975.

by carefully arranging black and white hair without cutting the tips, kumano’s craftsmen have formed the penguin’s face on the tips of the brush. the handle of the brush is colored matte black and features the penguin’s face together with chiharu sakazaki’s name engraved on the bottom. in addition, the brush comes with a package featuring an illustration of the penguin holding a kumanofude brush, hand-drawn by chiharu sakazaki especially for this product.  

project info:

illustrator: chiharu sakazaki

retailer: HKDS