Craftspeople

Akihiko

Ishikawa

, Kanazawa

Akihiko is a Kanazawa-based artist specializing in lacquer work, inspired by the texture and appearance of ancient objects that have appeared at various times throughout history

Atsushi

Tokyo

, Shinjuku

Tomita Sen Kogei was founded in 1914. Atsushi was appointed the fifth and current generation head in 2006 and is inheriting Tokyo’s dyed komon techniques, as well as dyed Edo komon and Edo chintz

Gaku

Toyama

Gaku who runs the gallery GAKU Ceramics was raised in a family whose ancestral trade was pottery, namely the Etchū region’s Etchū-Seto Yaki, which has been passed down through the generations since the 1590s

Heizo

Kyoto

Since its establishment in 1894, “restoration and creation” has been the heart of Tatsumura Art Textile

Hiroyuki

Ishikawa

Hiroyuki runs Ushikubi Tsumugi × MIZEN Hakusan Store “Kagano Oriza”, born from a partnership between MIZEN, a clothing brand using traditional Japanese textiles and the weaving house that produces Ushikubi Tsumugi, hand-spun and woven using techniques passed down for generations

Hitoshi

Ishikawa

, Kanazawa

Maida Senga Kogei is characterized by its integrated production of all processes of Kaga yuzen kimono production

Kasho

Kyoto

Kashogama is a Kyō-yaki pottery manufacturer that has been creating ceramics for four generations

Kasho

Shiga

, Shigaraki

Kashogama is a Kyō-yaki pottery manufacturer that has been creating ceramics for four generations

Kazuya

Kyoto

, Uji

Established in 1839, the Nanjo Kobo is one of the few workshops in Japan that specializes in the manufacture of orin, bells found on Buddhist altars and rung to accompany the reading of a sutra or to drive out the prayer’s evil thoughts

Keikou

Kyoto

Keikou is the third generation of a Kyoto family specializing in the art of Japanese lacquer

Keisuke

Kyoto

, Uji

Miyake is a Kyoto-based producer of bags and traditional Kyo-ningyo dolls, luxurious Japanese dolls made around the city of Kyoto

Kiichiro

Tokyo

, Taito

Founded in 1652, Domyo has been creating a variety of kumihimo products through hand-dyeing and hand-braiding

Koji

Toyama

, Takaoka

Momentum Factory Orii is known for its innovative copper casting and coloring in Takaoka, Toyama Prefecture, a town with 400 years of tradition, and a wealth of cutting-edge casting technology

Kotaro

Kyoto

Since mid-1800s, Hiyoshiya has been breathing new life into traditional crafts. Carrying forward the older traditions in the production of wagasa (Japanese-style) umbrellas and paper lanterns, all the while developing new products

Kyoji

Kyoto

, Tango

Tamiya Raden has pioneered the creation of a new form of textiles which integrate natural materials such as silk, sea shells, lacquer, wood and leather

Makoto

Kyoto

Makoto is a ceramic artist who derives inspiration from the natural landscape and who uses original techniques to produce a rich variety of works

Masaki

Ishikawa

, Kanazawa

When making glass, Masaki keeps asking what he finds important. To be simple. To be natural. Transparency

Masao

Kyoto

, Tango

Yushisha is focusing on Japan’s only remaining wisteria weaving technique as a means of promoting the revitalization of the Tango region

Michito

Kumamoto

, Tama

Rokuchoshi Shuzo is a distillery located in the village of Nishiki, in Kumamoto Prefecture. The region’s traditional methods of using its rich rice, combined with the clear groundwater has allowed for a 500 year history in shochu making

Mikihiro

Gifu

, Nakatsugawa

Hinoki Soken’s craftsmen have specialized in wooden hinoki (cypress) bathtubs since the company’s establishment

Mitsuru

Kyoto

Mitsuru is a First-Class-certified tatami craftsman based in Kyoto, specializes in “high-tech” handmade tatami for traditional Japanese architecture as well as contemporary art and design projects

Motoyuki

Niigata

, Tsubame

Gyokusendo is one of the most prominent copperware manufacturers in the renowned Tsubame-Sanjo area in Niigata Prefecture

Nobuo

Toyama

Tanihata has been producing luxury wood screens using the kumiko which is a delicate and sophisticated technique of assembling wooden pieces without the use of nails, with roots going back to the 8th century

Osamu

Kyoto

Nakagen has been lovingly growing Kitayama cedar trees which are high-end compared to most others for more than 130 years

Rakunyu H.

Shiga

, Shigaraki

Based in Shigaraki, Kochu-an continues to pursue the charm and possibilities of Shigaraki ware, from tea utensils down to vessels purposeful in everyday life

Rakunyu Y.

Kyoto

Yoshimura Rakunyū III is one of the very few makers of the well-known Rakuware pottery in Japan, a tradition with a long history

Shoko

Hiroshima

, Fukuyama

Shoko is a lacquer artist who finds inspiration in the mysterious spirituality that underpins the technology of an artwork

Suguru

Okayama

Suguru creates indigo-dyed works and engages in activities to pass on Japan’s indigo culture to future generations. The old farmhouse in which he lives is nestled in the mountains of Okayama Prefecture, one of only a handful of households remaining in the village.

Taizo

Toyama

Taizo established his own studio in 1997. He is today one of the few people helping promote Toyama’s glass culture of over 300 years, and passing on the skills to the next generation

Takahiro

Niigata

, Sanjo

Marunao, specialized in carved ornaments for temples and shrines, was established in 1939 in Sanjo, Niigata Prefecture, creating items used by a greater range of people using the same techniques as in making carpentry tools

Takatoshi

Tokyo

, Shinjuku

Founded in 1952, Fujiya Dyeing Studio was one of the dyeing operations that gathered around the abundant water of the Kanda and Myoshoji rivers that flow through Shinjuku Ward. Current head Takatoshi explores designs and uses suited to modern lifestyles, while pursuing ever-better creations

Takeshi

Kyoto

Nishimura Yuzen-Chokoku was established in 1934 as a Kyo-Yuzen engraving specialist for the custom-made, Yuzen-dyed fabrics

Tomoki

Kyoto

, Tango

Nippon Genshōsha was founded by a new generation of swordsmiths who with their honed skills and new values aspire to create Japanese swords that reflect the present

Toru K.

Kyoto

, Wazuka

Toru is an artist who continually asks questions and exhibits a profound flexibility in choosing materials as the starting point of his expression, such as clay, metal, and nails

Toru Y.

Kyoto

, Tango

Itoasobi was established in 1935 in Tango, Kyoto, one of the centers of silk fabric production in Japan

Toshiyuki

Kyoto

, Uji

Makino Urushi Kogei collaborates with artisans and designers of different fields in order to regularly produce objects that have never been seen before

Tsutomu

Toyama

Tsutomu opened the studio, Wood Carving Iwasaki, in Toyama city’s Higashi Iwase-cho, and has since developed a unique worldview rooted in tradition

Yasuhiko

Kyoto

, Tango

Kuska aims to combine tradition, fashion, and art to create products that are handcrafted by artisans through the seamless cycle of material production, dyeing and hand-weaving

Yasuhiro

Kumamoto

, Tama

Hayashi Shuzojo was founded in 1682. They has been upholding tradition while integrating new technologies, continually striving to create the perfect sake brewery

Yasuna

Kumamoto

, Tama

Takata Shuzojo produces handmade Kuma rice shochu in Hitoyoshi Kuma region of Kyushu, a rice shochu production area, where Kuma shochu has been made for 500 years

Yohei

Kyoto

, Wazuka

Seiwaen still follows the traditional techniques passed down from his predecessors, and the simple tenet that creating good tea is as important as ever

Yoshihisa

Shiga

, Shigaraki

Sōhōgama kiln has a high level of technology and trust, and its washbasins have been a long-selling product for the TOTO CERA Trading for 23 years

Yukio

Ishikawa

, Komatsu

Kinzangama kiln specializes in Kutani-yaki overglaze enameling, since it is founded in 1906

Yuko

Kyoto

Within the long history of Kiyomizu ware, Kosongama kiln is a pottery studio that has been in operation for over 100 years