atelierkakko I created the kanji “馬” (horse) using the hiragana characters from the phrase “うまくいく”, which means “everything will go well.”
The coming year, 2026, is the Year of the Horse in the Japanese zodiac.
With the wish that everything may go smoothly and successfully, I displayed this work in our classroom and invited all of our students to try writing it themselves.
As a result, it has become one of the most popular and well-loved characters in our calligraphy class, cherished as a symbol of good fortune.
In Japan, hiragana and katakana were originally developed from kanji.
Because of this history, reconstructing a kanji using uniquely Japanese kana characters is a playful and creative expression that is deeply rooted in kanji culture.
It allows us to rediscover the freedom and joy of writing, while still respecting tradition.
If you would like to try writing this character yourself,
I recommend giving the “馬” a sense of motion—as if the horse is running freely and powerfully across the page.
