Kumiko is the Japanese art of wooden lattice, seen in shoji doors, transoms and lanterns since the Asuka period, 1,400 years ago. Thin strips of wood are cut, notched and planed to such exact angles that hundreds of them lock together by pressure alone, without a nail or a drop of glue. Pick a frame and a pattern, and watch the panel being assembled, piece by piece.
Click a cell to change its pattern, and mix patterns in one panel.
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Frame and grid
Pattern
Wood and light
* Total length of strips for a panel 30 cm (12 in) across.
The grid: jigumi
First come the long strips of the grid, the jigumi. Where two strips cross, each is notched halfway through so they sit flush: a half-lap joint. In the triangle grid (mitsukude) three strips cross at every joint, which takes notches cut at 60 degrees, at the top, bottom and middle of the strips.
The infill: tsukeko
Then each cell is filled with small pieces, the tsukeko, planed on a jig to the exact angle and length, so they snap in and hold each other tight. A good panel can have thousands of them; a craftsman fits them one by one, from the middle of the panel out to the frame.