The culture of Kyoto developed in harmony with the lives of the people of Kyoto and the seasonal beauty of Kyoto's natural environment, but also under strict expectations of excellence. Each generation passed on their techniques and creative spirit to the next generation as evidence of their contribution to the world of Kogei, the world of Japanese arts and crafts.

Established in 1946, the Kyoto Kogei Association now celebrates its 75th anniversary. The Association comprises a diverse range of artists from various exhibiting groups predominantly from Kyoto and involved in dyeing and weaving, ceramics, urushi (lacquerwork), metalwork, dollmaking, glassmaking, woodwork, shippo (cloisonné), kirikane (gold leaf cutting), bamboo crafts, metal and gemstone crafts, and sekiho (mineral). As a group of artists that does much more than simply hold public exhibitions, we have left a definite mark on the history of Kogei, the world of Japanese arts and crafts.

Cultures around the world share a common cultural custom to root arts and crafts in the characteristics of their country, their region, their climate, and their natural environment.

For many years, we have sought to create an opportunity for people from all over Japan to view the arts and crafts that the people of Kyoto have developed over the centuries. We have worked hard to plan such an exhibition with support from the Agency for Cultural Affairs. The exhibition is scheduled to be held at the Matsuzakaya Ueno Department Store and is titled Kyoto Kogei Association in Tokyo: Kyoto does Crafts. This is the first of what we hope will be many such events.

Each of our members works intimately with their materials and uses their unique ideas and techniques in the pursuit of modern-day Kogei. We sincerely hope that this exhibition will provide a platform for many people to gain a greater understanding and appreciation of our work.

I would like to finish by taking this opportunity to express my gratitude to all of those whose extensive cooperation and support has made this exhibition possible.

Noboru Hata
President
Kyoto Kogei Association

The Kyoto Kogei Association has long been the driving force of post-war arts and crafts from all over Japan. In the year that the association celebrates its 75th anniversary, I would like offer my warmest congratulations on the hosting of this momentous exhibition in Tokyo.

Allow me to begin by paying tribute to President Noboru Hata and all association members for their enthusiastic, untiring approach to this exhibition despite the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The ancient city of Kyoto has produced and developed numerous world-class works of art. In particular, the city’s arts and crafts have incorporated contemporary techniques and progressed while fusing tradition and modernity. Since its establishment in 1946, the Kyoto Kogei Association has poured its efforts into promoting and developing arts and crafts while exceeding divisional and group boundaries. With artists from various fields—such as dyeing and weaving, ceramics, urushi lacquerwork, metalwork, dollmaking, glassmaking, wood and bamboo crafts, and shippo cloisonné—the association has paved the way for the development of arts and crafts from across Japan.

In this exhibition, leading artists from Kyoto and the rest of Japan will exhibit a total of 150 works of art. I am in no doubt that all who visit will thoroughly enjoy the outstanding techniques on show, as well as the sense of beauty provided by the diverse expressions and designs.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs will begin its move to Kyoto in the next fiscal year. As the culture capital of Japan, to ensure that we can utilize the influence of culture to revitalize communities and lead national cultural policies, we will work in tandem with the agency and other related parties to communicate Japanese cultures throughout Japan and the rest of the world. I ask for your continued support as we engage in efforts to do so.

To conclude, I look forward to the continued development and success of the Kyoto Kogei Association and its valued members.

Takatoshi Nishiwaki
Governor of Kyoto Prefecture

Kyoto is a melting pot of different craftsmen and women. It is home to every possible style, and has continued to lead new trends throughout its history. If we look back to the 20th century, for example, artists from Kyoto instigated crafts of individual expression in earnest in part four of the 8th Teiten Exhibition in 1927. These artists included ceramists such as Kiyomizu Rokubey V, Kusube Yaichi, and Morino Kako, and textile artists such as Minagawa Gekka and Yamaga Seika and other pioneers of Japanese crafts. Artists in the 21st century have inherited these styles, adapted them to their own work, and expanded the expressions of Nitten artists.
Post-war, Japan saw the emergence of liberalism and avant-garde art with the Shinsho Bijutsu Kogei-kai, the Shiko-kai, the Pan-real Bijutsu Kyokai, the Sodeisha, the Joryu Togei (Women's association of ceramic art), and the Senshoku Shudan Mugendai. On the other hand, Moriguchi Kako, Hata Tokio, and others from the Japan Kogei Association carried Japan’s traditional crafts forward with sure techniques and originality. Today, their children and pupils are expanding their expressions even further. Elsewhere, the Kyoto City University of Arts, nearby universities, Tokyo University of the Arts, and other art academies have developed numerous individuals for the next generation of art in Kyoto.
That is, centered on the creative expressions of these artists, crafts in Kyoto have encompassed everything from liberalism, avant-garde, feminism, and academism to the professionalism of the occupation. On the one hand, this vast range of artwork is linked to local industries, while historically, it is also linked to the tea ceremony, flower arrangement, and other Japanese cultures, as well as traditional Japanese paintings and other elements of art and design. For example, the Rimpa school of painting, which is representative of early modern Japanese art, was not only shaped by painters, but by a range of outstanding craftspeople such as lacquer artisans, potters, metalworkers, and even picture framers.
The Kyoto Kogei Association is symbolic of the close, abundant links among Kogei artists in Kyoto. The association—whose first president was the above-mentioned Yamaga Seika—was established not long after the war in October 1946, at a time when even accessing food might have been a challenge. It was set up as a body of artists dealing with wide-ranging mediums and from various groups. Today, with textile artist Noboru Hata as president, the association comprises around 350 highly artistic individuals working in five divisions: Dyeing and weaving, ceramics, urushi lacquerwork, metalworking, and other crafts.

Compared to artists in Kanto and other regions, the styles of artists active in Kyoto are incredibly diverse, in that the shapes and patterns they use are everything from the concrete to the abstract. Moreover, their individual perspectives are clear, their decorations are free of hesitation, and they use color liberally. Each artist has the ability to transform the flamboyant into the elegant.
Rather than being stoic, these artists forthrightly display their individuality through visual language. In fact, this approach perhaps shows the artists’ recognition of one another. In Kyoto, artistic craft objects, fiber art, and traditional crafts coexist as a matter of course. Kyoto’s respect for individuality is a key trait in today’s international society.

I have always emphasized that artists are social entities, and in Kyoto, this is a natural way of thinking.In Japan overall, art and culture tend to be thought of as surplus products, but in Kyoto, crafts have been a necessity for people to live as human beings, much like daily meals.
With this exhibition, the dependable arts of Kyoto are to go on display in Tokyo. I sincerely hope that the numerous, ambitious works of the Kyoto Kogei Association can refresh and break open the recent sense of entrapment brought about by the unprecedented pandemic.

Kazuko Todate
Art Historian and Professor
Tama Art University

The Kyoto Kogei Association is a rare body of artists with no other like it in Japan. The artists hail from diverse fields such as dyeing and weaving, ceramics, urushi lacquerwork, metalwork, dollmaking, glassmaking, woodwork, shippo cloisonné, kirikane gold leaf cutting, bamboo crafts, metal and gemstone crafts, and sekiho, and are not associated with any specific organization or group. They have come together under the banner of "Kogei" and have continued their pursuit of beauty through new artistic expressions. The association comprises numerous first-rate artists in each field, including members of the Japan Art Academy and living national treasures, and with around 350 members in total, its sheer scale is remarkable. It is a group that has been formed precisely because of the long history and wide-ranging cultures of Kyoto. Further, Kyoto is home to a great many art schools, and in addition to working at their own workshops, many association members also work as instructors at senior high schools, specialist colleges, universities, and research institutes, and even as researchers themselves. In a variety of ways, the association is entrusted with developing the next generation of artists.

Since its establishment in 1946, the association has built up an extensive track record predominantly through exhibitions, and through friendly rivalry, its artists have sought to promote and develop the field of Kogei. In addition to an annual exhibition, the association also hosts a large-scale anniversary exhibition every five years, where visitors can see larger works from a greater number of artists. Moreover, while the association has long hosted exhibitions in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and other regions in Japan, it has also gone overseas, with an exhibition in Edinburgh, UK, in 2001, and two exhibitions in Shanghai, China, in 2016 and 2018. In 2011, the association held an exhibition in Nantan City in Kyoto to coincide with the National Cultural Festival, while in 2015, it hosted the Beauty of Rimpa in Kyoto exhibition alongside the Kyoto Nihonga Association to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the Rimpa school of painting in both Kyoto and Tokyo. In recent years, the association has teamed up with art museums and galleries in both Japan and abroad to proactively participate in member-selected, voluntary, and invitational exhibitions.

Cross-genre interaction among members provides fantastic opportunities for the artists to confront new materials and methods, and not be constrained by tradition. This provides a foundation for the creation of new expressions, and as the artists are not influenced by any particular organizations or groups, the association functions as a platform where artists can try out new things while freely demonstrating their individuality.

Recently, the association has been working on an archiving project to bring together artist information, and a project to reinforce its communicational capabilities so as to keep up with the times. In particular, the strengthening of its communicational capabilities using IT is essential for the world we live in today. Its new website has provided a new means to link global users with member artists, regardless of their understanding of IT, and is a hugely important step forward to showcasing the individuality of the artists to the rest of the world. From a broader perspective, it is a way to raise the level of Kyoto's Kogei, and also a way to send out the Kyoto brand where individuals can come gather.

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the association has been extremely active, pouring its efforts into exhibitions, communications, and collaborations with hotels and shops. Meanwhile, in addition to their art, the association’s artists are proactive in diverse roles, be it their jobs or their work to develop the next generation of artists. It seems to me that the members are fighting the crisis of the craft shared by the members that can only be done in the association by being proactive, even though they have diverse roles such as individual work and training of future generations in addition to producing works. In addition, exchanges with overseas organizations are gradually increasing, and there is a growing sense of expectation among post-Covid-19 pandemic associations that their efforts toward a brighter future are beginning to bear fruit. In this way, we are beginning to see the strengths and possibilities that only a collective organization can offer.

To conclude, I pray that the great roles and efforts of the Kyoto Kogei Association are carried forth to the next generation, and I look forward to its continued development.

Sachiko Sugama
Chief Curator
The Museum of Kyoto