No thesis for carpenters 大工の卒論

Carpentry School Graduation Project / 大工育成塾　修了制作

This carpentry school is a national project set up to protect Japanese traditional wooden architecture. The project was established 13 years ago aiming to raise competent and skilled young carpenters.

The course is 3 years and each student learns practical skills at associated carpentry firms on a full-time basis in addition to a whole 2 days of theory lectures at the school once a month. This school has a very clear vision of preserving and handing down the traditional skills which it would be no overstatement to call world class in these modern days of mechanisation and a decreasing number of skilled carpenters.

In the final year, the students are assigned to build a whole house on their own in a completely traditional way. This is the graduation project that all the students in the final year from all over Japan work together to complete. In fact I was once a student of this school too, but today I’m excited to participate as a teacher. Stay tuned in to see the progress 🙂

大工育成塾とは伝統木造建築に関する国家プロジェクトの教育訓練施設であり大工職人育成を目的とする3年制の学校です。月1回一泊二日の講義に加え、提携工務店の指導棟梁の下で個別に実技指導を受ける現場修業が主となります。

機械化が進み技術を持った職人が減ってゆく中で世界でもトップレベルの伝統技術を絶やすことなく次世代に繋いでいくという目的で13年前からこのプロジェクトが始まりました。

3年生になると伝統木構造の家を一棟、塾生だけで手刻みで建てるという実習があります！これが「修了制作」です。全国から修行を終えた塾生が集まり皆で力を合わせてつくりあげるのです。実は僕も大工育成塾の修了生です。先生として参加させてもらっています。笑

どんな家ができあがるのか、楽しみですね！