This collaboration resulted in the creation of the brand 2016/. There, the pieces were definitely contemporary with an obvious focus on forms and uses. As I was looking at these pieces I realized I could have never known these were made in Arita. To me, this raises interesting questions: in Japan, Arita ware is easily identifiable because of its unique styles (you can read more about it in my previous blog post). But in collaborating with foreign designers, it becomes impossible to connect the finished product with the place of production. While there are obvious benefits in sharing the knowledge and skills, I wonder how Arita’s identity will evolve in the future. In an effort to relaunch the production in Arita, which has struggled against foreign competition these past decades, Saga prefecture’s officials are earnestly promoting Arita ware internationally. This campaign, called “Episode 2” aims at shaping Arita’s future as a porcelain production center for the next 100 years: This ambitious project “will focus on a variety of projects under 3 key concepts: innovation, branding and nurturing creators” . If you want to learn more about what this Episode 2 is about, I highly recommend you visit the official website which lists all undergoing projects as well as a very interesting series of articles filed under “Topics”.
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |