Ethnological Museum - Barcelona, Spain 2003

Curator: Jacqueline Okuma

The designers and artists in this exhibition used traditional techniques and processes to create their works. However, their objective was not merely to represent the artistic skills of Japan from the past, rather, in order to keep these crafts alive they transformed the contents of their work and designed pieces relevant to modern life.

Washi (paper), urushi (laquer), kimono, sumi-e (ink painting) and tōki (ceramics) transcend the elements from which they are made. The artists’ sophisticated sense of then and now results in beautiful forms that embody the spirit of Japan and it’s long history. Each work integrates Japan’s past values and present experiences.

Eriko Horiki, Washi (modern)

Toshiyuki Kita, Urushi, Wahi, Pewter&Industrial design

Genmei Takahashi, Kimono

Tsukuru Inari, Tōki

Isao Nakamura, Washi(Traditional)

Torin Hashimoto, Sumi-e

Eriko HORIKI – Washi

Jul 10, 2003 Comments: 0

Horiki is a genuine designer, artisan and artist and embodies the essence of what it means to be Japanese. She has taken traditional Japanese paper and propelled it into the future so that it can thrive in both Eastern and Western settings. Her ingenuity paired with a profound understanding of the paper’s capabilities conceived the concept of washi in design ...

Kita TOSHIYUKI – Urushi

Jul 09, 2003 Comments: 0

Kita’s work life has allowed him to crisscross between Japan and the West. He has dedicated his creativity to form links of communication and exchange between the two civilizations. Further, he feels at home in both cultures and thus Japan and the West have inspired his work. With a strong foundation in tradition and legacy, Kita has developed a personal ...

Genmei TAKAHASHI – Kimono

Jul 08, 2003 Comments: 0

After graduating from the prominent Murasakino High school in Kyoto, Takahashi met the American artist Stanton Macdonald Wright, then a lecturer at the University of California, Los Angeles. The lasting impression from his interaction with Wright and the influence from his father, a painter, convinced Takahashi to become an artist. He then enrolled in and graduated from the Otsuka School ...

Tsukuru INARI – Tōki

Jul 07, 2003 Comments: 0

Tsukuru Inari graduated from the Department of Theological Literature at Aoyama Gakuin University. As a student he met the ceramist Yu Fujiwara, who was designated as a National Living Treasure by the Japanese Cultural Ministry. He was taken not only by Fujiwara’s personable qualities but also by the color and the smell of this unusual Bizen pottery. For twelve years ...

Isao NAKAMURA – Washi

Jul 06, 2003 Comments: 0

Isao Nakamura was born in Kaminaka-cho, Haigyu in Tokushima prefecture on the island of Shikoku, one of Japan’s four main islands. This area of Tokushima has a long-standing tradition of washi (Japanese paper) making. His father and other craftsmen in Haigyu taught Nakamura the traditional techniques of washi throughout his youth. As the number of craftsmen able to create Haigyu ...

Torin HASHIMOTO – Sumi-e

Jul 05, 2003 Comments: 0

After graduating from the prominent Murasakino High school in Kyoto, Takahashi met the American artist Stanton Macdonald Wright, then a lecturer at the University of California, Los Angeles. The lasting impression from his interaction with Wright and the influence from his father, a painter, convinced Takahashi to become an artist. He then enrolled in and graduated from the Otsuka School ...