Analogue Life

EN | JP

Lacquered Bowl ( dia 15cm x h5.4cm)
** While this small soup bowl is food safe, because of the rough texture and mild scent of the lacquer, some users may prefer to use it for decorative purposes such as a plant pot or for potpourri etc.

Self-taught woodworker, Rentaro Arakawa, grew up in the foothills of the mountain forests in Minami Izu, Shizuoka Prefecture and was influenced by the abundant nature surrounding his childhood home. In his twenties he took up woodworking, and later started working with urushi (Japanese lacquer). When selecting wood, he is drawn to materials that have holes, cavities, deformations, or that were discarded during the process of milling, rather than pristine materials. After shaping his pieces, he finishes them with a colored urushi, which in addition to adding color and texture, ensures they are both functional and durable.

Arakawa says of his work, "I find beauty in wood that carries a sense of narrative or that is worn-out and abandoned. Fallen trees, standing dead trees, and the slow transformation of stone walls covered by nature, with changes in their texture throughout the seasons. I want to capture the effects of nature and its gradual changes over time, while creating utensils that fit into modern living spaces".