Private Echizen Lacquerware Experience and Cycling Tour

Kawawada—The Echizen lacquerware town with a 1,500-year history. It is said that Echizen lacquerware got its start after it was so skillfully used to repair the Emperor Keitai's cracked crown, resulting in the art being promoted. In this tour, we will be visiting two lacquerware workshops in the Kawawada area. The lacquerware workshops that you will tour in this program are promoting the spread of lacquer craftsmanship and lacquerware culture that has been passed down for 1,500 years at Echizen lacquerware production sites. *You may be guided to a different workshop than the one shown in the photo. Thank you for your understanding. Kinkori Shikkiten is a lacquerware workshop with a history dating back over a century. Kinkori Shikkiten is a lacquering workshop run by a pair of brothers in Kawada. In this activity, receive direct instruction from the elder brother, Masataka Kinkori, and create a lacquered bowl. Imadate—The Echizen washi paper town with a 1,500-year history. It is said that a beautiful woman came down from the mountains and taught the locals in the village how to make washi paper, and that was the start of the art. In this tour, we will visit the Iwano Heizaburo Paper Mill, which makes Japanese paper, in the Imadate area. The Iwano Heizaburo Paper Mill is staffed by craftswomen like Makiko Iwano, a fourth-generation traditional craftsperson. The Japanese paper they make is primarily used for Japanese-style paintings (Nihonga) and was beloved for its quality by the painter Yokoyama Taikan. It is breathtaking to watch Echizen Japanese papermaking and the powerful display of four people making the largest paper size of 7 x 6 shaku (1 shaku = approx. 30.3 cm). Calligrapher Kason Nishiyama began studying calligraphy at age 6 and has produced numerous works. Nishiyama's works are not bound by convention or tradition, and they exclusively capture the essence of their subjects.