”Antique Asahi” deals in maki-e lacquerware and cloisonne enamel ware from the Meiji era, which are impossible to reproduce today and were made using advanced techniques.

Julia: Hello. Nice to meet you.

Mr. Fujishiro: Nice to meet you. Please, first of all, please take a look around the store. We mainly deal in maki-e and cloisonne enamel ware from the Edo and Meiji periods, as well as Satsuma porcelain*.

Julia: It’s beautiful, I can’t help but admire it.

Fujishiro: The store has been established and taken over by my grandfather’s generation. I heard that during the Showa period, the Beatles came to the store and purchased a considerable amount of money. Maki-e has always been popular among Europeans.

Julia: European clocks and watches are also highly valued as works of art with artistic and precise techniques, so perhaps there is a similar sense of value in Japanese crafts.

Fujishiro：Crafts are not born everywhere, but only where there is a long civilization. Crafts remain in places where civilization has continued and life has been stable and peaceful.

In Japan, there have been wars, but traditional craft techniques have been passed down through the generations. That is why there are so many foreigners who come to Japan to buy knives and other items, such as blacksmiths for swords.

Julia: Are maki-e and cloisonne often purchased by collectors?

Fujishiro: Some people buy them for investment purposes, but most are collectors. I talk to them so that they understand the true value of these crafts and pass them on to the next generation with care, rather than converting them to money value. To begin with, there are no craftsmen today who have such high skills in maki-e and cloisonne enamel ware. It is difficult to say whether the same products can be made today at the price of the products we sell here.

Julia: What generations of customers visit your store?

Fujishiro：I don’t think you can understand the true value of a craft just by looking at it. You have to buy it yourself. And then, to be honest, it is not easy for young people to afford it due to financial constraints.

Julia: Besides, I feel that the motifs depicted in maki-e and other art forms can only be enjoyed by those who have a certain level of education. I think that only when you are educated can you appreciate the true value….

Fujishiro：That is true. For example, the often depicted motif of Mount Horai (Horai-san), it is difficult for beginners to quickly picture it as a symbol of longevity in the olden days. Even we, when we purchase products, sometimes it is not immediately clear what is depicted. We have to gain experience by researching in books and looking at many crafts. It is also fun to decipher the patterns in this way.

Julia: Do you have a favorite piece among those on display in the store today, Mr. Fujishiro?

Fujishiro : This is a Satsuma-yaki tea bowl. I don’t think it is possible to reproduce it anymore. Look at the inside of the bowl. I don’t know how he painted such detailed patterns…

Julia: This is amazing. There were many gorgeous things like this in the Meiji era. You were producing many of these gorgeous crafts for overseas markets.

Fujishiro: In the Meiji period, these gorgeous and gorgeous crafts competed with each other, and the patterns gradually became more detailed and artistic.

Julia: So there are no craftsmen today who have this level of skill?

Fujishiro: Even back then, people entered the workshop at the age of 12 or so, went through a series of apprenticeships, and became full-fledged craftsmen at the age of 17 or 18, and retired by the time they were 30 or so.

Julia: At such a young age!

Fujishiro: In those days, there was no electricity or glasses, so presbyopia set in at around age 30. In that sense, craftsmen who could do this kind of work even back then were valuable. Anyway, I think it is impossible to reproduce the craftsmanship of the Meiji period.

Cloisonne is made by first creating an outline with thin metal lines, then pouring glaze into the outline and baking it, but I wonder how they made such detailed designs as this one.

Julia: It is totally different from painting, isn’t it?

Fujishiro: Are there any products that you are interested in, Yulia?

Julia: What is that box over there for?

Fujishiro: This is an inro chest, a box for storing inro. Customers sometimes ask for this kind of inro chest as a place to store the inro they have collected.

Julia: I understand that very well! I collect obi-dome and I always want to have a nice box to put them in. I would be very happy if I could collect them in such a nice chest.

Julia: Inro comes in many shapes and designs. I like this design.

Fujishiro: The Edo period was a time of frugality and thrift, so although they may look plain, many of them have unusual motifs or were made extravagantly.

Julia: I like the unique motif of the salmon and the feather board. I want to wear it when I wear a kimono.

Fujishiro: The motifs depicted are all New Year’s. This is a luxury that can only be used for the New Year. I like it the best among the current inro pieces. It is austere and tasteful.

Julia: I also prefer unusual and interesting motifs when choosing obi ornaments, kimonos, and obis. I am often attracted to animals or limited time of the year when they can be worn. A salmon and a feather board on an austere foundation is interesting. For New Year’s, it is likely to be a golden glitter for celebration, but I think it is also cool to go for an austere look.

Fujishiro: I am glad that you came here today and came to like Inro. Inro is the most concentrated example of maki-e technique and beauty.

Kogei Asahi handles valuable artifacts. We had a great time chatting with the owner, Mr. Fujishiro. As Mr. Fujishiro said, it is better to have a little knowledge of Japanese arts and crafts than to view them without any knowledge at all.

Motifs used in Japanese arts and crafts are common, so whether it is Japanese-style paintings, tableware, maki-e, or kimonos, if you can get into even one of them, you will be able to enjoy them all!

*Maki-e…A lacquer craft technique in which a picture or pattern is drawn on the surface of a vessel with lacquer and maki-e powder (metal powder such as gold or silver) is sprinkled on the surface before the lacquer has hardened.

*Cloisonne: A technique for decorating metal by baking a glassy glaze on it.

*Satsuma-yaki…Ceramic ware that has been produced in Kagoshima Prefecture for about 400 years. There are two types: white Satsuma and black Satsuma. White Satsuma is characterized by its vivid colors.

Costume cooperation: DESTREE

Tops: 85,800 yen

Pants: 72,600 yen

(Inquiries: IZA 0120-135-015)

Photographed by Tatsuya Yamanaka

Writer/YUCO