ユトレヒトの日々｜ディック・ブルーナ

出会いは幼稚園児かもっと小さい頃、正方形の絵本のシリーズが家にありました。3人姉妹の末っ子なので、すでに上の2人が読んでたのか…　本が家にあったというのが最初の記憶ですね。

当時、絵本にあった林檎のイラストがなぜか頭から離れなかったんです。ある日、スカートを買ってもらうことになって。紺色の生地にリンゴのアップリケが付いたスカートを見かけて、あの絵本の林檎に似てる！と思って買ってもらった記憶があります。

もちろん絵本を見てたらミッフィーが出てくるので。当時うさこちゃんかな、そんな名前で絵本は出てたと思います。でも、やっぱりウサギより、（ちょっと地味な存在の）そばにいる茶色いクマやイヌのほうが好きでした。

絵本も含めたら20冊以上、絵本はオランダ語で書かれたものも面白いし、表紙が好きで買ったものも。あとブルーナさん自身にスポットが当たったデザイン本など色々あります。

中でも1番好きなのは、駅の広告や本の表紙を描いてた初期の作品です。グラフィックデザイナーの時代、特にそのときの絵や色使いが好きですね。

ブルーナさんが生まれ育ったユトレヒトには何回も行ってます。仕事でアムステルダムに行った際に、たぶん10回以上は。ブルーナさんが亡くなるまでずっと住んでいた街です。

オランダのイメージのまんまです。アムステルダムからは特急電車で45分くらい。５年くらい前かな、駅は新しくなって近代的で立派なものになりました。

街はオランダで一番高い教会（ドム教会）があるところで、そこを中心に街が成り立っています。古い大学もあって街並みは落ち着いていますね。もれなく運河もあって。逆に運河沿いには雑貨店、コーヒーショップが並んでいて適度な賑やか感もあります。歩いて散策するにはちょうどいい街。賑やか過ぎず、アムステルダムほど観光客が多いわけでもなく、ゆっくり歩けるなっていう雰囲気はあります。

ただ街を見にいってました。ブルーナさんが住むユトレヒトという街を。もちろん住所はわからないんですけど...  存命だった頃は、もしかしてこの辺をご本人が自転車で通るんじゃないかって思いながら歩いてました。

ブルーナさんは、毎朝ルーティンが決まっていて、同じカフェに行って同じ席に座って、それからアトリエに行くって話を読み聞きしていたので。このカフェじゃないかなっていうとこに行って、あの...  声は掛けないで偶然お目にかかれないかなぐらいは思ってました。

ははは　そうかもしれないですね。

あんなにいろんな仕事をしているのに、アシスタントも雇わないでずっとひとりで仕事をしてたそうです。

アトリエに着いたらまず最初にお掃除。好きな音楽をかけながら午前中は仕事。お昼ごはんを食べにおうちに帰ってまた戻って仕事。午後は早めに仕事を切り上げて帰るという。黙々とした静かなルーティンにも、いいなって思うところがあって。ひとりで創作をしているのもすごく憧れます。

線がジガジガしてる。線がジガジガ揺れて、一生懸命描いた感が、なんだか伝わってくる気がするんです。それとシンプルなのに多くのことを感じさせる絵を描くってすごいなって。

味なのかな。親しみやすさっていうのか。たぶんそのジガジガにブルーナさんの個性とか思いとかが籠ってる気がするんです。定規をあてたような真っ直ぐの線って、あまり心のひだひだに引っかからない気がして。

ブルーナさんの企画展や商品、日本でかなり展開してますよね。ひとつ残念なのは、震える線が消えているのをよく見かけるんです。綺麗に消えている時があって、これ違うのになぁって。やっぱりそういう絵には魅力を感じないんです。

やりすぎないことを意識するとき、やっぱり思い出してますね。シンプルさで色々伝えてるブルーナさんのようなひとがいるって。ブルーナさんは、シンプルにして観る人にイマジネーション与えるのが哲学だって言ってます。

どうだろうね。

お家でのこともたまに出てくるけど。ブルーナさんの生活みてると本当に家族とアトリエだけなんですよね。すごく生活もシンプル。よそに行って帰ってきたら、その場はきっと楽しまれるんでしょうけど、すごく気疲れして帰ってくる人なんだろうなって勝手に想像して。そういうところも親近感わくと言うか、いいなって思うところです。

We might have met when I was a kindergartner or even younger. There was a series of square-shaped picture books at home. Since I was the youngest of three sisters, maybe my older sisters had already read them, or the books were already there. That's my first memory.

At the time, I couldn't get the apple illustration from the picture book out of my head for some reason. One day, I was going to get a skirt. I saw a navy blue skirt with an apple applique on it, and I thought it looked like the apple in that picture book! So I asked to buy it, and I have a memory of that.

Of course, since Miffy appeared in the picture books. At that time, it might have been a bunny character, with a name like Usa-chan. But, to be honest, I actually preferred the brown bear and the dog who were there beside the rabbit, rather than the rabbit itself, which was a bit more understated.

Including picture books, I have more than 20 books. There are interesting ones written in Dutch, and there are also ones I bought because I liked the cover. There are various design books that focus on Bruna himself as well.

Among them, my favorite is his early works, where he drew advertisements for the train station and book covers. I particularly like the art and color usage from his days as a graphic designer.

I have been to Utrecht, the city where Bruna was born and raised, many times. I think I've been there more than ten times when I visited Amsterdam for work. It's the city where Bruna lived until he passed away.

It's just as you would imagine the Netherlands. It's about a 45-minute express train ride from Amsterdam. It became a new and modern station about five years ago.

The city is centered around the highest church in the Netherlands (the Dom Church). There is also an old university, and the cityscape is calm. Of course, there are canals as well. Along the canals, there are also shops and coffee shops, creating a moderate liveliness. It's a perfect city for walking and exploring. It's not too crowded like Amsterdam, and it's not overflowing with tourists. There's an atmosphere that allows you to walk around at a leisurely pace.

I just went to see the city, the city where Bruna lived. Of course, I don't know his address... When he was still alive, I walked around, thinking that he might be riding his bicycle around this area.

Bruna had a routine every morning. He would go to the same cafe, sit in the same seat, and then go to his studio. I heard about it in a story I read. So I went to this cafe, and, um... I thought, wouldn't it be nice if I accidentally bumped into him without saying anything?

Hahaha, maybe.

Even though he was doing so many different works, he worked alone without hiring an assistant.

When he arrived at his studio, the first thing he did was clean up. He would work in the morning while listening to his favorite music. He would go back home for lunch and then return to work. In the afternoon, he would finish work early and go home. There's something appealing about his silent and serene routine. I also have a strong admiration for creating alone.

His lines are wobbly. The shaky lines convey a sense of effort, as if he was drawing with all his might. And even though they are simple, his illustrations make you feel many things. I think that's amazing.

It's like a flavor, maybe. It gives a sense of familiarity. I feel like his personality and thoughts are embodied in those shaky lines. Straight lines drawn with a ruler don't seem to touch the depths of one's heart.

His exhibitions and products are quite popular in Japan, aren't they? One thing I find regrettable is that I often see the disappearance of the shaky lines. Sometimes they are perfectly erased, and I think, "This is different." I just don't find those kinds of illustrations appealing.

When I consciously try not to overdo things, I do think of him. There are people like Bruna who can convey various things with simplicity. Bruna said that his philosophy is to keep it simple and stimulate the imagination of the viewers.

I'm not sure.

Although sometimes his home life is mentioned. Looking at his life, it's really just his family and his studio. His life is very simple. When he goes somewhere and comes back, I imagine he must be exhausted and tired. I feel a sense of familiarity in those aspects, and I think it's nice.