Wajima Lacquerware Artisan Proud of Traditional Techniques Used to Make Coffee Cups Given to Pres. Joe Biden

The Yomiuri Shimbun

6:00 JST, April 12, 2024

The Wajima-nuri lacquerware coffee cups that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida presented to U.S. President Joe Biden were made in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, which was severely damaged by the Noto Peninsula Earthquake.

“I’m glad to have the opportunity for people around the world to see Wajima-nuri lacquerware,” said Takahiro Taya, the president of the Taya-shikkiten lacquerware shop that made the cups.

According to Taya, 32, Kishida, who has inspected disaster-stricken areas, told him that he would bring Wajima-nuri products when he goes abroad. Taya received an official request in early March from the government to produce the lacquerware coffee cups. He said he felt pressure because he “had to make sure to create a good product.”

Taya-shikkiten has been in business for more than 200 years, and its first floor was damaged in the Jan. 1 earthquake. Each craftsperson worked at home to complete the coffee cups.

The cups bear the names of Joe and Jill Biden and are decorated with a beautiful gradation of blue and black. The painting was done by Hiroshi Nakakado, a 66-year-old nushi painter, using a “bokashi” technique. The cups were intentionally made with no handles to exhibit the characteristic of lacquerware in that it does not get hot.

“I want people to notice the high-quality techniques used to make Japanese lacquerware,” Taya said, adding, “I hope it will provide an opportunity for many people to think about the earthquake.”