True Craftsmanship
Behind every single beautiful pen that you are holding is the many-month process of creation and dedication by our artisans, from across Japan to various destinations in the world. They have devoted their whole life to master the art and created beautiful work that can be used for decades, and we are honored to have this golden chances to work with them and introduce these arts to the world.
*Please note that we do not publish information and pictures of some artisans per their personal requests.
Shippoyaki Artisan
Master Okagaki Yukie
Master Okagaki Yukie has crafted amazing shippoyaki arts for the Seven Treasures fountain pen.
Growing up in the land of traditional crafts, Master developed a strong passion for arts and designs, and had her life tied to this field by starting her major at Kuwasawa Design School.
Fountain pens by Master Okagaki:
- Seven Treasures
Maki-e Artisan
Master Yamanoshita
With many years of experience as a Maki-e artisan, Master Yamanoshita has created precious artwork not only on fountain pens but also many other luxury lacquerware products.
To Master Yamanoshita, every single maki-e product caries it own story and spirits which can bring luck, prosperity and peace.
Fountain pens by Master Yamanoshita:
- Dream Pen - True Maki-e (featured in the successfully funded Kickstarter project: Dream Pen)
- Dream Pen - Raden: Sun Pillar, Civil Twilight
- Dream Pen - Limited Edition 2021: Light Pillar, Earthshine
- Dream Pen - Limited Edition 2022
Urushi Artisans
Wajima Urushi
Master Tsutomu Taya
Master Taya is the former president (理事長) of Wajima Urushi Association (輪島漆器商工業協同組合) and the former owner of Taya Shikkiten (田谷漆器店) that holds a history of 200 years in making lacquerware products. With 63-year hands-on experience in lacquerware technique, Master Taya is one of the top Masters in Japanese lacquerware creation.
Believing that "Once the traditional technique disappears, we cannot revive such valuable art", Master Taya has spent his whole life to master the lacquerware techniques and pass it to the next generations. His son, Mr. Akihiro Taya is also current vice-president of the Association and owner of Taya Shikkiten.
Master Toshiaki Hiko
With 36 years of experience in doing coating for Urushi products, Master Hiko enjoys his everyday work with the beautiful Urushi layers. This job requires great attention and patience but it never fails to motivate Master Hiko. He believes that creating a smooth base coating is the first step toward making a perfect lacquerware product.
Master Mitsuo Uwamaki
Master Uwamaki already possessed a 33-year experience in making Urushi lacquer and doing the base coating. Creating a satisfying Urushi lacquer without any flaw is one of the steps that Master Uwamaki spent his whole career to learn and master.
Master Satomi Hira
Master Hira, whose age still remains a secret is one of very few ladies spending her whole day in lacquerware workshop and making Urushi products. Master Hira loves the perfect shape and beauty of the final artwork. Her main role is sharpening and scraping of lacquer products, which requires a lot of detailed attention and significant effort over a long course of time.
Fountain pens by Wajima Urushi artisans:
- Dream Pen - True Urushi (featured in the successfully funded Kickstarter project: Dream Pen)
- Dream Pen - Bokashi Urushi
- Dream Pen - Meraki
Hirota Urushi
Master Yoko Hirota
With a great interest in traditional handmade crafts since elementary school, master Hirota decided to choose this path and developed a strong passion for Japanese Urushi-making traditions. Master Hirota now has more than 30 years of hands-on experience in making Urushi and Maki-e.
Hirota's artwork focus on the stylish minimalism and durability of the objects. Either it's a pair of chopsticks that serve everyday meals or it's an ornament used in the palace, it must last long and express aesthetics of Japan's art.
Glass Artisan
GLASS ARTISANS FROM KUNISAKI, JAPAN
*Please note that we do not publish information and pictures of Kunisaki Glass artisans per their personal requests.
Products by Glass Artisans from Kunisaki
Wood Artisan
MASTER VOLANS (Hong Ming Hua / 洪明華)
Master Volans's name was chosen to be displayed in the Art Museum of Taipei by Taiwanese Government. With the love for wood sculpture and fountain pen, Master Volans has spent his whole life researching and trying to make use of wood sculpture for writing. This time, in collaboration with Master Volans, we have been able to create a unique and natural fountain pen collection which brings the feeling of nature into your everyday writing.
* You can find the previous version of this page HERE