Hissan Pottery Koka, Shiga Prefecture
One of Japan’s most beloved forms of pottery is Shigaraki-ware (Shigaraki-yaki), a stoneware ceramic produced in Shiga prefecture and one of the country’s “six ancient kilns” (the others being Bizen, Tamba, Echizen, Seto, Tokoname). Though ceramics existed in various forms in Japan since the Jomon period (8000 – 5000 BCE), the craft began to truly blossom in the 12th century with the rise of new production techniques, consumers, and roles in culture. Kilns were first established in Shiga when the Emperor Shomu built a new capital there in 744 following a rebellion and needed ceramic tiles created for his palace in Shigaraki. From then on, Shiga became a major ceramics production hub due to the many skilled artisans who settled there, as well as the reddish clay from the banks of local Lake Biwa that allowed distinctive forms and styles. Hissan Pottery is such a heritage company, founded in 1870 in the town of Koga in Shiga as a manufacturer of many items from tea utensils to flower vases. After the current fifth-generation owner took over his family company, he decided to focus on exquisite tableware for restaurants and home chefs domestically and abroad. UKA restaurant at JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles features Hissan’s products as a “canvas” for the art of modern kaiseki. UKA guests can experience a spectrum of Hissan’s signature styles, from delicate off-white plates to metallic-black serving platters and iridescent chopstick-rests.
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