DESIGN

Kokontozai: KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts — Wajima Lacquer Bowls

『カーサブルータス』2025年2月号より

February 7, 2025 | Design | KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts | photo_Keisuke Fukamizu hair & make-up_Masako Osuga editor_Masae Wako　translation_ Mika Yoshida & David G. Imber

Searching all of Japan for handcrafted items that express its heart and soul, our proprietor, KASHIYUKA, presents things that bring a bit of luxury to everyday life. This time we visit the Wajima Kirimoto studio on Japan’s west coast Noto Peninsula, where we find Wajima lacquer artisans and the beautiful urushi lacquerware they create by hand.

Since the late Edo era [1603 – 1868] Wajima Kirimoto has been working in wood and urushi
lacquer. “The texture is like nothing I’ve seen before,” observed KASHIYUKA. “I’d like to
continue to challenge myself to come up with new means of expression while maintaining thetraditional lacquering methods and materials,” explained finishing artisan Mr. Shoji Takaho.

It’s nearly impossible to take your eyes off the glossy and smooth, velvety texture. Noto’s Wajima-nuri lacquerware made by Wajima Kirimoto studio exhibits traditional elegance with a lovely flair. We had a chance to visit the workshop, where the town, its people, and artisans are still experiencing unimaginable hardship since the massive earthquake that devastated much of it in 2024.

Purchase No. 81【Wajima Lacquer Bowls】The power of craft to embrace the soul.

“A major characteristic of Wajima-nuri is its durable and sturdy base, which uses diatomaceous earth pulled from Noto’s Mt. Komine. Diatomaceous earth is composed of the fossilized remains of algae that have precipitated to the ocean floor. The Noto peninsula was formed by movement of the Earth’s crust some 10 million years ago, causing the sea floor to emerge and become arable land. The diatomaceous earth that is fundamental to Wajima lacquerware is the result of this natural process,” says Ms. Kirimoto Junko, associate president of the company.