Dogou’s origins · Japan

Japan, at the Source

Places, gestures and materials behind some of the objects in our selection. These are the ones whose manufacture is confirmed.

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Place of manufacture

NiigataTsubame · Sanjō · Japan

The reference region for kitchen utensils

Tsubame and Sanjō, in Niigata Prefecture, form a reference region for kitchen utensils. Twenty-one objects in the selection are made there. Zoom in to see what comes from Tsubame and what comes from Sanjō.

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Place of manufacture

TsubameNiigata · Japan

A reference city for kitchen utensils

Tsubame is the city where Akebono is based and where Ebematsu Shoji has its headquarters. Eighteen objects in the selection are made there: tamagoyaki pans, graters, a spatula, chopsticks, a cutting board, bowls, a zaru, makisu, a stainless steel tea box, as well as Akebono’s shamoji and the Samekichi grater from the Tsuboe house.

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Place of manufacture

NagoyaAichi · Japan

Cotton woven on shuttle looms

In Nagoya, the Anything house weaves its cotton maekake aprons on Toyota shuttle looms from the 1920s.

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KakunodateAkita · Japan

Cherry bark, polished by hand

Kabazaiku is the craft of working wild cherry bark, harvested without felling the tree, then scraped, heated and polished by hand. The tradition began in Kakunodate, in Akita Prefecture, more than two centuries ago. The selection’s tea box uses this technique.

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IshikawaKutani tradition · Japan

Polychrome enamels since the 17th century

The Kutani tradition, in Ishikawa Prefecture, has been known since the 17th century for its intense polychrome enamels and narrative compositions. The selection’s large bird bowl belongs to this tradition.

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AritaSaga · Japan

The white, blue and red of Imari

The classic Imari palette was born in Arita in the 17th century: milky white, deep blue, bright iron red, greens and golds. The four hand-painted chopstick rests in the selection use this palette.

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WakayamaNegoro-ji Temple · Japan

A red revealed by wear

Negoro lacquer takes its name from the Negoro-ji temple, in Wakayama Prefecture, where monks made everyday lacquered objects in the 13th century. The red was not sought at first: it was wear that revealed it beneath the black. The braided tray in the selection is lacquered using this technique.

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