Yumiko Iihoshi
On the border between handmade and manufactured products
Yumiko iihoshi is based in Tokyo in the Meguro-ku area. She graduated from Kyoto Saga University of arts with a Porcelain major. In 2007 she was a part of the Daito-ku designer village and she started her own porcelain collection the same year.
It’s her philosophy that handmade goods should not retain many traces of their creators and on the other hand – manufactured products should not be too dreary.
For the manufactured product series she is using craftsmen from potteries across Japan to create original colors and shapes using manual processes. Each individual piece has a different look, and each piece shows different shades when glazed. This is a unique merit of yumiko iihoshi porcelain.
Bon voyage
This series is designed by imaging a container that can be brought along a trip. The series is manufactured by commissioning a pottery in Arita, located in Saga prefecture, Kyushu, Japan. Its round shape makes it surprisingly complimentary with various cuisines including fruits or sweets. The sleek shape seeks to move away from the habitual, everyday meal scene.
ReiRABO
Irabo Glaze is a traditional glaze within ceramic history.
This series displays modern Irabo Glaze by repeated experiments whose aim is to turn the method into certain products. Irabo Glaze used to have an ambiguous texture on its surface when it was introduced to Japan from Korea in the 15th century. As the glaze on the surface did not completely melt, it was considered incomplete as a typical ceramic. When this unevenness of the glaze started to be noticed then people began to appreciate the unevenly melted texture during tea ceremonies.
The perception of accepting incompleteness as beauty is very Japanese and Yumiko succeed very well the mission in turning the Irabo Glaze into a modern product. The name of the series "ReiRABO" is inspired by this fact.
