Pressed seaweed art

Based on an original Japanese language article by Tadashi Miyazaki

It is often said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Now it’s time to behold the beauty of colorfully pressed seaweed and algae.

In Japan there is currently a quiet boom of pressed seaweed and algae art.

Similar to the custom of pressed flowers, the green, brown and red colors of the seaweed come alive out of the water after being dried and pressed.

This past year, The Nippon Foundation has sponsored 3 courses to teach seaweed art under the leadership of experts in this field. Michiyo Noda, head of the Pressed Seaweed Association, describes seaweed as “the forests of the sea” which link the earth’s underwater environment together.

Pressed Seaweed Association training course members in Shimoda

Ms Noda said she began her interest in sea algae and seaweed 20 years ago when she visited Tsukuba University’s research center in Shimoda, the seaside town at the tip of the Izu Peninsula. There she saw many preserved samples of seaweed. She was impressed by the brightly colored beauty and natural designs of the seaweed, and began thinking of other ways to preserve the beauty of these samples.

After repeated visits to the Shimoda center and studying the varieties of sea algae and seaweed, she established the Pressed Seaweed Association six years ago, and with an initial group of 20 students she began teaching the artistic preservation of seaweed and algae.

Three training courses have been held to date at Tsukuba University’s research center in Shimoda with 43 participants attending the most recent training course in March 2010.

Pressed Seaweed Association chairperson Ms Noda (right) gives a talk at training course in Shimoda

In addition to speaking from her own studies and experience, Ms Noda invites noted experts to speak at the association’s trainings in Shimoda on such topics as collecting usable samples of seaweed washed up on beaches, color fixing, and preservation management.

It is said there are about 10,000 different types of seaweed which exist in seas throughout the world with 2000 species identified in the coastal areas of Japan. 400 different types of red seaweed and algae have been identified in the sea depths around Shimoda.

Sea algae mainly proliferates in the cold waters of the winter season and are washed up on the beaches by high tides in the spring.

Colorful example of a child’s seaweed art creation

In order to preserve the environment, the collection of colorful seaweed and marine algae for the seaweed art classes is limited to what can be found washed up by the tide on beaches and in the rocks around the shoreline in Shimoda.

The seaweed art association, in collaboration with The Nippon Foundation, has published an easy to use compact booklet as a guide to identify the most frequently encountered types of sea algae in the waters around Japan.

The “Pressed Seaweed” booklet Many young children are using the booklet as a guide during their summer vacations near the sea.

The booklet can also be used as an educational text for teaching and training sessions. It also explains the importance of protecting the marine environment.

It is hoped the next generation will learn not only the importance of understanding the beauty of seaweed and sea algae, but also the connection between this subject and the need to preserve the marine environment.