Vintage room divider screen in Kumiko teak, Japanese art

This beautiful four-panel folding wooden screen is a very elegant room divider. Kumiko's Japanese wood art is a precise method of assembling pieces of wood without glue or nails, where the individual lamellas are cut and assembled using a saw, hand plane or chisel. The screen folds easily and has been cleaned and lightly polished. Two small pieces of wood are missing from the complex pattern (the last two images), but they are difficult to spot even when looking for them. This art form developed around 600 AD and was traditionally used for wall hangings and partition walls. The motifs are not only beautiful, they also serve to distribute light and wind in a soothing manner and each motif has a meaning or imitates a model of nature that is considered a good omen.