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Ichiwado Kogei

Takamatsu / Japan

📍 1572 Yashima Higashimachi, Takamatsu, Kagawa 761-0111, Japan

What Ichiwado Kogei is known for

Ichiwado Kogei has made Kagawa lacquerware since its founding in 1917, when its founder trained in the Yamanaka lacquerware district of Ishikawa before opening a Takamatsu shop that relocated to Yashima after the war. The workshop applies traditional zokoku-nuri and goto-nuri finishes alongside brighter, contemporary color-lacquer designs.

Ichiwado Kogei was founded in June 1917 (Taisho 6) and has made Kagawa lacquerware for over a century from what is now its workshop in the Yashima district of Takamatsu. Regional press coverage traces the founder's training to the Yamanaka lacquerware area of Ishikawa Prefecture, a separate, older lacquer-producing region, before he returned to open a shop in central Takamatsu; the business relocated to Yashima after the Second World War.

The workshop's technique centers on two named Kagawa lacquerware finishes: zokoku-nuri and goto-nuri, both historic styles associated with the prefecture's craft tradition. Alongside pieces in these established finishes, Ichiwado Kogei also produces work in brighter, contemporary color lacquers and grain-forward wood finishes, positioning itself as making 'casual vessels accessible to younger generations' as well as gift-oriented collections.

The current workshop operates from Yashima Higashi-cho in Takamatsu, closed Sundays and holidays, and sells both from the physical shop and its own online store.

Best for — Kagawa lacquerware in zokoku-nuri and goto-nuri finishes, founded 1917

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