Dorodango: The Japanese Art of Making Mud Balls

by Bruce Gardner

"The coolest thing you didn't know you needed to see." – Buzzfeed

"Artist Bruce Gardner is a master of [this] curious Japanese artform." – This is Colossal

As featured on BoingBoing, National Geographic , and more!

Explore the craft and technique of dorodango in master crafter Bruce Gardner's new book, The Japanese Art of Making Mud Balls .

The Japanese hikaru dorodango, or shiny mud ball, is created by rolling earth by hand into a perfect sphere and polishing it until it gleams. Not only are the results truly impressive, but this calm and meditative practice, a traditional Japanese playground activity for children, has been rediscovered as a peaceful pastime for people of all ages.

Known for inducing flow, the ultimate state of happiness, this simple art is perfect for those who enjoy practicing mindfulness, spending time in nature, and working with their hands. It's also a lovely way to preserve soil that is special to you, whether it reminds you of home or a place you've traveled. As your collection of dorodango grows, you'll find that earth from different locations each have their own unique properties and finishes.

With beautiful photography and straight forward instructions, this handy guide will teach you everything you need to know to make your own mud balls at home with easily sourced materials.

In addition to dirt and a copy of the book, you will need the following materials to make your own
• Shovel
• Bucket
• Sandbags for storing soil
• Screens (a regular window screen will work)
• Paint Straining Nets
• Mixing Tub
• Flat knife
• Containers (shoe boxes, etc.)
• Plastic bags
• Clips or clothespins
• Dust Masks
• Mason Jar lid
• A smooth piece of wood
• Scale
• Mortar and Pestle

A wonderful gift book for fans of pottery and ceramic arts.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

128 pages, Hardcover

Published September 24, 2019

Reviews

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am absolutely in awe of this book. I don't know how I've gone so long and never heard about these.

Doradango, mud balls. Sounds so simple!
This book shows every painstaking process, step and stage in the making of these magic shiny mud balls..

The photography is lovely, the examples shown are beautiful.
I have never given dirt so much attention or interest, and certainly didn't realise how many types and colours there are.

I found the difference between dirt and soil interesting. And the history of dirt amazed me.

This is a book I will definitely be giving as a gift this Christmas and I plan to have several attempts at dorodango myself.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really lovely experience reading this after stumbling upon it at the library. I actually do want to go dig in the soil now!

[Elaine Aldred · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a challenge and the chance to try something different. Creating dorodangos (shiny dumplings) is all that. Being able to try this art form is down to Dorodango. The Japanese Art of Making Mud Balls. It had a look of a book I could not walk away from. Gorgeous photographs of an artist at work and a carefully curated array of his creations. It would appear to be the only book available on the art in English.
However, pretty pictures and a neatly turned out book is not much use if it doesn’t give a complete beginner enough help to achieve similar results.
I was also a little concerned by Bruce Gardner’s well set out workshop. I have a home with little outdoor space and certainly nowhere to process the dorodango raw materials in the same way as the author. Could I downscale what I could see happening in the book?
Dorodango. The Japanese Art of Making Mud Balls, might be small, both in terms of size and number of pages (128), but it is packed full of information, helpful advice and, given that a picture is worth a thousand words, crisp, atmospheric photographs.
In the UK, space is limited, so you do need to give some thought to where you get your soil from. You don’t want to be digging it where you might destroy the ecology, a bluebell wood for example. I don’t have a garden, but I have friends who do. More used to handing me a bag and scissors for cuttings, soil was a novel request, the reason why, a source of fascination.
Then began the delaying tactics. Sure, I’d made mud pies as a child. But turning these mushy blobs into something which looked as if it should be in an art gallery, beggared belief.
I spent some time grading the soil by handpicking through it for small stones etc. (part of the dorodango therapy), and sieving to get more fine soil with a metal kitchen sieve. It took five more days of procrastination before I got up the courage to add the water and got going.
As Bruce Gardner suggests, read the book through before you do anything. Then you just have to dive in to find out that what he is saying is true. You won’t take it all in with one go, but bits will stick (like the soil to your core) and make more sense as you work your muddy blob, which does miraculously turn into a gloriously round, leathery textured sphere with a bit of care and attention. I’m on my fifth dorodango as I write. There were a couple which didn’t work out, where I had to break them up and begin again, due to the type of soil I was using and learning to understand it better. Toggling between my, at first, messy creation, the photographs and text, my understanding of the process developed apace with each reiteration.
There is no doubt that the book has been very carefully structured by someone both very experienced and passionate about these earthy “shiny dumplings”. It is also reassuring to see amongst pictures of perfection, Gardner’s failures revealed in all their pictorial glory, as well as helpful explanations as to why.
His plastic bag concept, to hang the developing dorodangos in to stabilize the cores and build up the capsules to avoid cracking is so useful. I have also learned my lesson in not shining before the dorodango has dried properly, which can take ten days or more if you’re being cautious.
There are some YouTube videos showing more production-like quick drying approaches, but a dorodango is quite unlike handing clay and more like caring for a responsive living creature. So although the book tries to cover every eventuality, there is an unpredictability in the process, which is part of the fun.
If you buy this book, be aware that you are signing up to something that takes a hold as you experience the subtle changes in texture as the dorodango takes shape in your hands. You will also find yourself pouring over geological maps to see where the next new dorodango making experience will take you, as well as eyeing every field you pass for colour and composition.
For full review with pictures follow this link to my blog:
https://strangealliances.wordpress.co...

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Dorodango is a new tutorial and philosophy/art guide to creating hikaru dorodango, Japanese mud balls. Released 24th Sept 2019 by Laurence King, it's 128 pages and available in hardcover format.

I read and review a lot of crafting and art books as well as a fair bit of cultural philosophy. This book is both. The author has a calm, logical, and inviting writing style. He provides an impressive amount of detail and technique in the tutorials for each stage of the process, from choosing specific dirt through sifting and refining the materials, clay content, moisture, shaping and building, problem solving (cracks), texture, finishing, and more. In fact, I was quite impressed at how intricate and meditative the entire process is, especially considering the humble materials involved.

The finished products are primeval. I am astounded at the range of shades, textures, and colours resulting from water and dirt.

The short introduction (~4% of the total content) covers some of the history and background as well as the author's introduction to the process. The following chapters proceed through the steps from start to finish and include a gallery with sidebar descriptions of locations where the dirt was sourced and comments about the finished dorodango. Tools are minimal and easily available.

The photography throughout the book is spectacular. It's crystal clear and illustrative as well as being artistically appealing. A complete beginner will find all the information necessary in this volume to create, finish, and display their own dorodango. It's interesting that this is an art which had almost died out and which results in such appealing and beautiful end products.

I would heartily recommend this book and process to readers who are interested in Japanese aesthetics, philosophy, and mindfulness, as well as crafter artists looking for a new challenge.

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

[Witch-at-Heart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is amazing. I must have to say this isn’t something you can master one try but the results are undeniable beautiful. I was initially confused by some of the steps so I will just have to start slow with trial and error. I know it is something that will be rewarding and enjoyable thru the art of mastering something difficult. I love that it seems so simple yet so dependent on each step. The pictures are inspirational and I just want to play in mud. I plan to try this on a long weekends until I have successfully succeeded with more than one Dorodango than I want to try it with my grandchildren. The steps look very therapeutic and the results are undeniably beautiful. I received this book from NetGalley and I am so glad I did I am very excited to try this.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never heard of Dorodango before I received this ARC. I think this is a unique and wonderful way to preserve a special place. I think it would also special to add cremains to one's Dorodango. I never would have dreamed that you could take mud and turn it into such a pretty and shiny ball. Reading the book, I do see that it is not a quick and simple process. Bruce Gardner does a wonderful job in going through each and every step and explains what could possibly go wrong and how to fix mistakes. The photographs are exquisite. Dorodango is a beautiful book about a slow, meditative process.
#DorodangoBook #netgalley #reviewathon

[Gilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stumbled across the Japanese art of Dorodango (mud balls) when researching activities employing mud for young children. Hikaru dorodango is a traditional pastime of Japanese children but the apparent simplicity belies a stunning art form. This book was recommended as a guide and starting point for westerners. It accessibly distills down the author's acquired knowledge and skills from his many years of practice after he too stumbled across it and became hooked. A beautiful book and reference guide. Now to go and dig some dirt....

[Frederic · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a funny little book on what likely seems a funny little topic, but oddly engaging. I would actually consider teaching it in a material culture course, with the assignment to follow its procedures and make some mud balls – I think it could be a great learning exercise in engaging the physical world. But one does wish for more engagement in the text with actual Japanese writers, philosophers, and active dorodango-ists, without (more of) that it's at least in part appropriative.

[Eli]

Looking forward to making a functionless little object. I was talking to vic about this and she goes "Do these have a purpose I'm too dumb to realize?" and I was like "it's about the process" but actually I'm wanting to get more in touch with the properties of dirt for building with

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully photographed and comprehensive guide on making Dorodango , Inspiring and awesome will definitely have a go at this amazing art form I’m hoping I have the patience to do so

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative, with enough interesting background information to make it more than a simple how-to book.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as an introduction into a ceramics course and I think it was such a great way to prepare. Mud making teaches us about patience, appreciation and adaptation for different materials, and most importantly the idea behind the process and the impermanence of the work having more meaning and worth compared to a finished piece. I’ve spent 12 hours at a time in the ceramics studio at my school with absolutely nothing finished, but every time I’m in there I record my progress and I’m happy because I know that I’m already so much better.