With newer and rapid advancements in production methods across the world, sustainably produced goods have become rarer to come by. Furthermore, though such mechanical methods of production are often cheaper and more efficient, these developments have slowly eroded artisans’ opportunities to widely showcase their expertise.
With many of such craftsmen leaving their respective industries, how about joining our efforts in preserving authentic cultures and practices in Aichi Prefecture? After all, in our increasingly mechanised world, experiencing tradition first-hand is true luxury that allows us to connect with others, even across borders.
Honshū’s Aichi Prefecture is nestled between two major tourist hotspots — Tokyo and Kyoto — making it a convenient destination. Known as the origin of Toyota and for its local cuisine such as hatcho-miso cutlets, Aichi has long been a predominant figure in craftsmanship and expertise. On this trip I visited Nagoya, the capital of Aichi Prefecture, where I explored Noritake Garden and Arimatsu, a neighbouring town that merged with Nagoya in 1964. I also took a train down to Nishio, a smaller city known for its powdered green tea! These three exemplary sites are a showcase of Japan’s craftsmanship — from ceramics and fabrics to household staples like miso and matcha, there is no doubt that Nagoya and Nishio are key sites of Japanese culture and heritage just waiting to be discovered.
At Tricolage, we have curated many such cultural experiences for visitors with sustainability and respect at the forefront of our planning. If you’re looking for a special journey in understanding Japan’s rich heritage better, why not join us on a journey to preserve these historical wonders together?
Noritake Garden, where visitors experience the beautiful intersection between tradition and contemporary developments
Having just gotten off the Shinkansen, I was hoping to have a free-and-easy exploration day. Thankfully, just a 10-minute walk from Nagoya Station lies Noritake Garden Craft Centre which boasts a museum, gallery, craft centre and various green spots to find refuge in. Paying attention to the smaller world around you, you might notice the little skirting movements of water stick insects moving along the surface’s ripples. It was nice to be reconnected with nature especially in an increasingly digitalised lifestyle.
Noritake Garden’s Hidden Views
Further along the route, I visited Nitto Shrine which was established as a prayer for Noritake’s security and prosperity. In absolute dedication, Noritake’s first president, Kazuchika Okura, had built his house within factory premises — where Nitto Shrine now lies.
The Red Brick Building is also found along a quiet stream, and was the first factory of Nippon Toki Gomei Kaisha, a symbol of Western-style dinnerware in Japan. Being able to immerse myself in history allowed me to better appreciate the long heritage of Noritake ceramics.
A visit to the Welcome Center allows one to understand Noritake’s belief that sustainable production methods are not hindered, but supported by technological research. A dedicated section pertaining to their environmental activities explains more on Noritake’s product recycling system and seasonal events celebrating community artists.
Viewing the prized ceramics
In the Craft Center I went on a curated journey through the process of making China, a combination of clay, kaolin, feldspar and quartz in order to produce a translucent, pristine ceramic at the end.
Though no pictures are allowed, the route is built within actual working spaces of accomplished artisans, allowing one to watch as they mindfully mould pieces of clay together, forming various figurines, or even as they embark on the finishing process by removing burrs (edges) from moulded blocks. Watching such meticulous movement made me consider the thoughts and feelings that go into each hand-finished piece — whilst being able to replicate designs is masterful on its own, the human touch is still ever-present, bringing life into each piece.
On the next floor, visitors are given the opportunity to paint their own plates alongside the craftspeople who use 24 karat gold dissolved with aqua regia, forming liquid gold, to decorate the glazed pieces. Different methods of decoration such as airbrushing are also on exhibition, showcasing how modernity can interact with established processes to produce continually beautiful art.
Finally, on the upper floors of the Craft Centre is the Noritake museum — an archive of china from the past 100 years. These pieces were the forefront of Japanese exports and have a place on tables across the world. Walking through the museum felt like venturing across time, with each piece of ceramic being a representation of dinner tables across the ages.
By walking through Noritake Garden, I was able to understand the beauty of care and mindfulness. To see what goes into each product and how each piece is made was a gentle reminder that sustainability is indeed synonymous with luxury.
At Arimatsu, live in the moment as you appreciate age-old Shibori artistry cultivated through generations of connectivity.
After exploring the art and science behind ceramics in Japan, I wanted to find out more about another commonplace material - fabrics - and Arimatsu was the perfect place to advance my understanding of Japanese craftsmanship.
Arimatsu has its roots as a small village settlement along the Tokaido Highway from Tokyo to Kyoto, with its main industry being focused on tie-dyed cloths sold to travellers. Within the Arimatsu-type of Shibori, there exists more than 100 styles and patterns, each requiring a sharp attention to detail and a continued resilience in sewing each delicate pattern. I was really inspired by the sheer creativity by the craftspeople I met during my visit to Arimatsu!
Exploring Arimatsu’s old buildings
Strolling along Tokaido Road, the first thing that becomes apparent is how the merchant buildings seem to be frozen in time. These commercial houses signify the traditional architecture of tie-dyeing wholesale stores, with clay-coated walls as a form of fire-prevention and intricate lattice-work windows. These clusters of architectural heritage were thus designated as Tangible Cultural Property by Aichi prefecture, in recognising their exemplarily-preserved historical beauty.
A prime example of this is Oka Residence, a city-designated cultural property that is open to the public and features various shibori items and remnants of the Edo period. When I visited, I was kindly guided by Mr. Takeda Kenzou of the Arimatsu Friendship (Anaibito) Association, who brought me around the residence. On display were a variety of half-unravelled shibori cloths, allowing us to appreciate the lovely patterns derived from pointed curls. Arimatsu Narumi shibori utilises colour contrasts in shading created by tying textured fabrics with tightly-bound string. These patterns are further created through specific wrapping and folding techniques to create varieties such as sekka shibori (flower patterns).
Meeting Arimatsu’s artisans!
Moving along to the Arimatsu Narumi shibori Tie-Dyeing Museum, a short climb to the second level allowed me to meet and chat with skilled shibori artists. During my visit, I met Ms. Arakawa Kenzou of the Yatara-Miura style shibori and Ms.Takahashi Hitomi who focuses on the Tegumo style shibori.
The Yatara-Miura style shibori is unique for its use of a thicker thread and seemingly “random” pattern created through repetitive tying methods. When the fabric is dyed and the threads are unravelled, multi-pointed star-shaped patterns are created throughout the fabric. Ms. Arakawa shares that the size of each “star” is dependent on the width of the finger used to wrap each repetition of cloth, giving a literal human touch to each and every shibori cloth produced. I couldn’t help but be in awe at Ms. Arakawa’s precise hand movements and laser-focused attention, which was inspiring to me.
Meanwhile, the Tegumo style shibori is known for its spider web-like patterns. At the museum, I watched Ms. Takahashi skillfully sew and twist her white cloth into long cone-shaped spirals. Despite its great technical difficulty, Ms. Takahashi has devoted her last 30 plus years to the Tegumo technique and is now recognized as a leading expert in the style. This dedication shows Ms. Takahashi’s passion for the artform, which transferred to me as I watched her nimble fingers make quick work of the fabric.
Whilst sewing, both Ms. Takahashi and Ms. Arakawa were laughing heartily and chatting with each other about the history of shibori and its place in fashion today — I could feel their genuine love for the craft as they progressed through inches of cloth with pure smiles on their faces. Though both of them made the sewing process look seamless and simple, the sheer force required to ensure that the cloth is tightly bound by the cotton threads to create the distinct shibori patterns is testament to their mastery cultivated over the years.
Listening in to Ms. Takahashi and Ms. Arakawa’s conversations, they both expressed their desire for shibori as an artform to be preserved, and noted how it is becoming increasingly rare for younger generations to take an interest in this old practice. They were, however, pleasantly surprised by a foreign visitor they had earlier in the day who shared that they were practising shibori techniques back home as well after being inspired by videos of Arimatsu shibori online.
Meeting Ms. Takahashi, Ms. Arakawa and Mr. Takeda in my short visit to Arismatsu made it clear to me the effort they were collectively making in preserving Arimatsu’s rich heritage and culture — from its architecture to its practices. These practices have been passed down from generation to generation since the Edo period and have persisted until today with the efforts of such artisans and enthusiasts. As such, one can understand that each dyed shibori cloth is not simply a piece of cloth, but a manifestation of continued passion and the desire to preserve such beautiful traditions.
Having the opportunity to engage with these traditions directly and see with my own eyes the lasting architectural wonders of Arimatsu, I was better able to understand the importance of cultural preservation to ensure that future generations will also have the opportunity to enjoy these wonders. A visit to Arimatsu - where there are even shibori workshops for an authentic experience - is definitely encouraged if you would like to immerse yourself in its rich history.
Experiencing Aichi’s delicacies through Nishio’s specialty foods
If you’ve ever had the opportunity to try matcha (powdered green tea), you might have heard of Uji in Kyoto — but did you know that while Uji is known for its green tea in general, Nishio specialises solely in matcha?
Nishio’s sweeter matcha
With 80% of Nishio’s tea leaves being used for matcha production, there is no doubt that Nishio has harboured its own unique matcha culture. Uniquely, Nishio’s matcha has a deep, vibrant green colour stemming from growing the tea leaves under shade. During my visit, I was lucky to have Ms. Kazuko Kohara to guide me around and teach me about the secrets of Nishio matcha.
Beyond being situated next to the Yahagi river which produces mist beneficial to growing tea leaves, Nishio’s matcha production process has one key differentiator: black cloth covers!
Ms. Kazuko whipped out her hand-drawn picture book and explained that the black cloth covers ensure that the leaves grow broadly to absorb the limited light let in. As such, the grown leaves will be wide and soft, allowing for the creation of more theanine which is the component that produces the delicious “Umami” taste unique to Nishio’s matcha!
Wandering into the lush green fields, I could not help but be in awe of Nishio’s tea leaf pickers. In early May, the first harvest begins, with leaves being picked entirely by hand! Ms. Kazuko then shared that matcha and tea picking is seen as a bonding experience in Nishio: Middle schoolers in Nishio help out with picking the tea leaves in May, with many of them having grown up experiencing tea ceremonies with their families. I thought it was lovely that in Nishio, matcha is not just an agricultural product, but an experience that brings the community together.
At Aoi Seicha, I was then able to see what came next for the carefully grown tea leaves. A step into Aoi Seicha’s factory, we were immediately greeted by the whirrs of precisely timed grinders.
In the middle of the exhibition room stood an unassuming stone object, which I soon learned was a manual grinder. Through many rounds of testing, the company decided on a specific type of stone from a neighbouring region to create these manual and mechanical grinders, and even determined the number of optimal revolutions per minute when grinding. We were also able to try our hands at turning the manual grinder. Although it was tiring and heavy, it was a very soothing experience to watch the freshly grinded matcha powder slowly fall from the grinder’s crevices. Vibrant green and surprisingly not bitter at all, I was able to sample the “fruits” of my labour thereafter!
We were then treated to a wonderful and quiet matcha tea ceremony experience, paired with delicious wagashi (accompanying snacks — this time we sampled dried fruits and a matcha cracker). I didn’t previously know about the intricacies that went into tea ceremonies, but the slow process of whisking and purposefulness of each movement made me appreciate the inherent mindfulness. From seeing the growing tea leaves to grinding the dried leaves into matcha and finally tasting properly prepared matcha, I was truly amazed by the conscientiousness that went into each step — I would really recommend coming down to Nishio to experience this delicious reminder of slow living!
Learning the secrets of miso
Moving away from matcha, I found another staple of Japanese cuisine nestled within Nishio — miso.
Miso, known for its antioxidant capabilities, has been a mainstay of Japanese cuisine since the Heian period where it was reserved for the elite. As Miso Park Hatoya’s ninth generation owner, Mr. Kinji Toriyama, explains — miso made here is fermented in old barrels from the Meiji period by combining koji (cultivated mould with rice, soya etc.) and soybeans. With the thick layers of stones piled at the top of each barrel indicating how long the miso will be fermented for, I thought about the craftsmanship and knowledge required to ensure that the miso does not go bad during the fermentation process. Notably, at Hatoya, even the by-product of creating miso does not go to waste as it is turned into tamari sauce, a form of soy sauce with no added wheat and a thicker texture.
In a taster session with Mr. Kinji, I was let into the secrets of restaurants’ miso soup recipes. If you’d like to find out more about what exactly makes miso soup taste so good, I would recommend a trip down to Miso Park Hatoya! (Hint: It has something to do with the various types of miso produced) Getting to taste miso that has been fermented for a year versus one that has been fermenting for three long years was certainly a treat — though the former was lovely and almost sweet, the latter had a deep, intense flavour born from the extended fermentation period. Indeed, good things come to those who wait!
Mr. Kinji explains: miso is not necessarily a process purely created by humans, but a result of the interaction between ingredients and nature during the fermentation process. Thus, he sees his role as a facilitator in creating the perfect environment for the fermentation process. In speaking to Mr. Kinji, I gained a newfound appreciation for agricultural craftsmen like him who work tirelessly to bring out the potential of each ingredient!
My thoughts
Having the opportunity to explore these hidden areas in Aichi Prefecture, I was able to uncover a much deeper understanding and appreciation for Japanese craftsmen, who put sincerity and hope into every product. Though these crafts might take more effort to produce, I believe that it is precisely this effort in sustainability, quality and mindfulness that makes these crafts worth preserving. Making an effort to journey down to road less travelled allows for a deeper immersion into our surroundings and a greater connectivity with the local people, who have made this trip unforgettable.
Want to experience by yourself an experience full of tradition and get inspired by the passion of Aichi Prefecture’s craftsmen? At Tricolage, we are always seeking to deliver inspiring and sustainable travels for those who have yet to explore Japan’s many hidden beauties, with many clients enjoying our high level of curation.
Come join us for a memorable journey around Japan today! In the meantime, you can get inspired by following us on Instagram or continue reading about another fascinating region of Japan: Ehime.
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