Collection: Kintsugi ikiri x KOKO utsuwa collaboration
The one and only art of Kintsugi
Kintsugi which is the art of repairing broken items and bringing out a new beauty is a traditional Japanese handicraft, and at the same time is an aesthetic technique that brings about the physical representation of the mindset of Wabi-Sabi.
The pieces available in this project take old traditional Japanese ceramic items and under the supervision of Kintsugi Artist Kimura Iyo, are by hand fixed carefully using kintsugi techniques to make special treasures.
What is Kintsugi?
Kintsugi is the act of using urushi lacquer to repair broken items, which is then layered with metallic powder, normally gold or silver, or sometimes platinum, and is a traditional Japanese handicraft that has continued for many centuries.
The theory behind Kintsugi isn’t about hiding the cracks but instead showing them off, and moreover making a cracked piece even more beautiful, and breathing new life into the item. The philosophy of highlighting an item’s scars and reviving it in a beautiful way, in particular, calls upon international sympathies and has gained attention from a sustainability and ecology point of view. As well as this, from groups that have an interest in art and design, it is highly regarded.
Yobitsugi: A traditional technique that creates new beauty
Yobitsugi is a type of kintsugi, and is a repair technique where parts of cracked and broken ceramic items are repaired by combining them with other ceramics, glass, or urushi items. Not just being a simple way of repairing a piece, by intertwining different materials and colors, a new beauty is born.
This method, which is loved for the sentiment that broken items are calling out to each other as if they were items that are difficult to separate, was originally developed as a design style for tea ceremony items. After that, it gradually took root in the general populace, and then started to be used for normal everyday items.
In particular, in the Mino Region (today’s southern Gifu Prefecture located in the centre of Japan), yobitsugi items are said to have the meaning of “once they are joined, they can’t be separated”, and therefore as belonging collected by a bride for her marriage, they have become indispensable. It is not just a way of simply repairing items, but yobitsugi, which creates new value, is a traditional technique that has deep ties to the Japanese aesthetic sense.
Kintsugi Artist Iyo Kimura
After graduating from university, while she became involved in various industries such as the film industry, editing industry, and sales industry, she learnt kintsugi. In 2021, in Motomachi, Yokohama, she started her own workshop, and from repairing items on request, she also creates her own pieces of kintsugi art and teaches kintsugi lessons at Atelier fourteen.
In order to spread traditional Japanese techniques to the rest of the world, she lectures to foreigners who live in Japan, and also broadcasts internationally. In the autumn of 2025, she held the solo exhibition 'Poser la main' in Paris. Additionally, she serve as the executive director of 'Minato no Art,' an art event originating in Yokohama.
A fusion of tradition and innovation; New Kintsugi Art
The items available are created under the supervision of Kintsugi artist Iyo Kimura, and have been created with the goal of making more people more familiar with the traditional Japanese handicraft technique of Kintsugi. Normally, kintsugi is done using hon-urushi lacquer, but for this item, to make it a little easier to show off the charms of the items, we have gone forward with a method that doesn’t make use of urushi.
Kintsugi artists, who have a deep understanding of the method of using hon-urushi, through their handling of this method, while keeping true to the traditional aesthetic sense, pursue new expressions through Kintsugi. They bring out new possibilities of materials, and complete items that work as art pieces that blend into today’s lifestyle.
This initiative has the goal of conveying the charms of kintsugi to the world, while also raising up the spirits of the kintsugi industry as a whole. As well as this, we want to put effort into the cultivation of young kintsugi artists who hold the future of the art in their hands, and help develop this as an attempt to connect tradition to the future.
Kintsugi restores broken items and brings out new values at the same time. While protecting this ethos, evolving into something that fits with the time, we can bring inspiration to even more people.
Package
We look to deliver this precious kintsugi items with as much care as possible. In order to protect the items, they are packaged in a white wooden box, and then with our ikiri original design gift wrapping, they are finished to create a graceful looking package.
This special packaging, which is a fusion of Japanese tradition and modern sensibilities, is perfect to give as a gift. As a gift for a loved one, or just as a special addition to your own collection, we hope that you can enjoy the beauty of Kintsugi to its fullest.
About ikiri
With the concept of Super Upcycle Japan, they take items that have become old, or lost value, or are discarded, and using Japanese art or traditional handicrafts to give added value, then give these items new life as new items. This concept is used to give Japanese artists and craftsmen a place to broadcast their work to the world.
Ikiri is a word in Osaka local dialect which indicates someone or something that is trying to make them look chic or good looking.
In recent years, it has had more negative connotations, but they see the iki or Japanese aesthetic sense that was born in the Edo Period (1603-1868) which saw various amazing traditional handicrafts, art, and products that came from different places around Japan, and they combine these and give them new life. They want to connect to the future Japanese techniques and this iki, and broadcast it to the world.
About Super Upcycle Japan
New value born again from art and traditional handicrafts
Upcycling is the act of taking items that are going to be discarded or abandoned, and by adding designs or ideas, giving them new added value, in order to make them usable once more. Due to this, we can lengthen the lifespan of an item, and compared to just normal recycling, we can upgrade the item at the same time.
At the company, they want to develop this idea even more, and Super Upcycle Japan is their vision. They take items that have become old, or lost value, or are discarded, and apply Japanese art or traditional handicrafts to said items, they can take them beyond simple regeneration, and transform them into items that have more value than when they were new.
Through this process, they can provide a platform for Japanese craftsmen and artists to broadcast their work to the world and at the same time, help contribute to solving the extremely important problem that is affecting the field of traditional crafts, which is the lack of successors to each craft.
