Videos | Traditional Crafts of Japan

  Woven textiles produced in the Nishijin area of Kyoto are known as Nishijin-ori, or Nishijin textiles. They typically feature brilliantly dyed silk interwoven with lavish gold and silver threads into complex and skillful patterns. The core of the basics of Kimono is known to be, “a dyed Kimono goes...

  Shigaraki ware is one of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns. Together with Bizen, Tamba, Echizen, Seto, and Tokoname, it is considered to be one of the most outstanding Japanese kilns with traditions that remain even today. It is said to have originated in the eighth century, when Emperor Shomu had...

  Designated a traditional craft by the government of Japan, Wajima lacquerware is produced in the area around Ishikawa Prefecture’s Wajima City. Its glamorous, graceful, and sophisticated products are widely known as a top-quality utility lacquerware. For its base, (wood material), Wajima lacquerware uses cypress, Japanese Zelkova, Japanese Judas, or...

  In the Edo period, (1615-1868), new forms of metalwork were made, including kitchen utensils and knives. Sakai craftsmen began applying their blade expertise to cooking knives, creating sharp blades with superb knife balance just as they had done in the past with tobacco knives. To this day Sakai continues...

  Kyo Sashimono is a kind of wood joinery produced in the Prefecture of Kyoto. Sashimono is a collective name for furniture and furnishings assembled with wood joints that originate from the process of measuring with a monosashi, (woodwork ruler). There are many paulownia wood products of this craft, such...

  Echizen paper is known as the highest quality Japanese paper, manufactured in Reihoku province of Fukui Prefecture. Echizen paper has adopted new methods such as adding fibers into the paper, dropping color paint, inserting a hidden pattern you can see only under light, and so on. It is remarkable...

  Brushes of Nagaho were introduced by the priest Kukai, who learned the methods to make them in China. The offspring of Kiyokawa engaged in brush making in Imai, but later the center of brush making moved to Nara, where there was a large production of Sumi, (India ink) and...

Kyo-Yuzen is a dyeing-technique that originated in the middle of the Edo period, towards the end of the 17th century. The dye is directly applied to the fabric and the designs often depict animals and nature of the different seasons with vivid and vibrant colors. What makes the Kyo Yuzen...