Jihei Ogawa was a samurai turned gardener during the Horeki era (1751-1763) of the Edo period. His work in gardens has been passed down from generation to generation as his family business, and he has created many famous gardens, including Murinan Garden and Heian Shrine Garden, both of which are designated national scenic spots. The company’s vision has been passed down for more than 260 years in the form of succession of names, and today Ogawa is the 12th generation of the family to inherit this vision. Even in 2025, Jihei Ogawa continues to create gardens that “bring people and nature together.

The shape of the garden changes with the times, but what remains the same

The color of the sky, plants swaying in the wind, and mountains in the distance. The presence of nature enriches our lives. In Japan, we have lived in harmony with nature since ancient times. The Asuka Period saw the creation of the oldest Japanese garden, followed by the Heian Period (794-1185) with the pond-centered “Chisen-teien (pond garden),” the Muromachi Period (1333-1573) with the “Karesansui (dry landscape garden),” which expresses mountains and flowing water without using water, and the Azuchi-Momoyama Period (1573-1584) with the “Chanen (tea ceremony garden)” for the tea ceremony room. In every age, people have nurtured their relationship with nature through gardens.

In recent years, the role required of gardens has changed with the westernization of buildings and the diversification of lifestyles. Nevertheless, the garden remains a bridge between people and nature. The Japanese people have a deep-seated respect and faith in nature. Katsusho Ogawa, the twelfth generation of the Ueji family, is rethinking this relationship between people and gardens and creating a better form. Under the motto of “listening to the voice of nature and building a bridge with the people who live there,” he aims to create a place where people can spend their time in peace and tranquility.

The “Jihei Ogawa” spirit passed down from generation to generation

Jihei Ogawa, the founder, was a samurai turned gardener in the middle of the Edo period (1603-1868), and he worked on his garden with a sword at his side. The trade name “Ueji” is a fusion of the “植” of “plant” and the “治” of “Jihei Ogawa,” and is an expression of his pride as a craftsman as well as his name. The trade name “Ueji” has been passed down to his descendants, and the name “Jihei Ogawa” has been passed down from generation to generation by the head of the family. The seventh generation of the family has been active in the garden up to the present day. Unlike conventional gardens, he created a naturalistic garden that made the most of nature itself, attracting many people. By incorporating the Biwako Canal, which had just opened at that time, he created a pond garden as a living landscape. He was commissioned to create gardens for the residence of Aritomo Yamagata (Murinan), who served as the third Prime Minister of Japan, and for the Sumitomo and Mitsui families, as well as for the restoration of historical buildings such as the Kyoto Imperial Garden, Shugakuin Imperial Villa, and Katsura Imperial Villa. Due in part to his influence, Jihei Ogawa has created numerous pond gardens to the present day.

A garden is not finished when it is created; rather, it begins when it is created. In particular, a Japanese garden cannot be described only in terms of the scenery in front of it. They live on a gentle time axis, show a variety of expressions as the seasons change, and speak to us quietly over time.

Ogawa says, “I want to create a garden that will be cherished and nurtured for decades and centuries to come. His straightforward attitude toward his garden, akin to the samurai spirit of “loyalty to one’s lord,” is still alive today.

Cherishing the Roots of the Garden and Leading the Next Generation

The name “Jihei Ogawa” has been passed down for about 250 years. He not only creates new gardens, but is also asked to restore gardens that have been in existence for a long time.
In doing so, Mr. Ogawa places importance on knowing “how he was born and how he has lived his life. Based on that trajectory, he determines how to nurture the garden to make it happy in the future.

Sometimes we nurture a 100-year-old garden into a 101-year-old garden, and sometimes we find a new direction. The gardener’s role is to guide the garden to a form appropriate to the times while preserving its roots.
A garden lives long only when it is loved. Even if it is only one person, if there is someone who cares about it, the garden will surely respond.

The renewed “Fugetsu no Niwa” at Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, inheriting the wishes of the seventh generation, Jihei Ogawa

The “Fugetsu no Niwa” garden at Kitano Tenmangu Shrine was created by Jihei Ogawa VII in 1902, in time for the “Thousand Year Grand Mantō Festival. About 120 years later, Mr. Ogawa breathed life into the garden once again.

The Fugetsu-no-niwa (Fugetsu Garden) extends around Fugetsuden in an L-shape. In front of the hall, a waterfall cascades down from a hill and curves around to form a pond. Carp swim in the pond, and as you walk around the garden, you will see various views of the garden as a circular garden. At the end of the waterfall stone arrangement is a “cow statue” associated with Sugawara Michizane, the god of learning, and a row of garden stones that resemble the shape of a cow. The stones are arranged “as if to protect the cow,” and the faith of the people is alive and well in this stone arrangement. While utilizing existing garden stones such as Moriyamaishi (Moriyama stone), which was favored by the seventh generation, and Kibuneishi and Kuramaishi, famous stones in Kyoto, giant stones gathered from various places are used for the new garden, from the waterfall masonry to the revetment. While preserving the foundation laid by the predecessors, the twelfth generation has evolved the garden into a “Fugetsu no Niwa” (garden of the wind and the moon) suited to the modern age.

A garden is a “quiet dialogue” between people and nature, a garden that makes you want to visit again and again.

The charm of a garden lies in the fact that when you step into the garden, you see a different view from the one you saw yesterday.

The appearance of the garden changes day by day, as buds sprout and mosses grow. This change is also a time to face nature and oneself. A Japanese garden that makes use of the shape of the land and the plants has not only instantaneous beauty, but also “ephemeral beauty” that oozes out as time passes. It is not something that is completed overnight, but a series of small changes.

I would be happy if, in the course of our daily life, people remember how we talked in the garden, or how beautiful the scenery was that day. Not only in the season of fresh greenery and blooming flowers, but also in its rugged appearance after a harsh winter. The feeling that can only be experienced at that moment is richness.

Facing oneself and spending time more richly

Thinking about nature through the garden is also a way of confronting oneself. Sometimes we feel our own growth, and sometimes we realize our decline, when we see landscapes that are different from those of yesterday. For Japanese people, who have lived their lives in the midst of nature, this is a very natural activity. The future that lies ahead will be gently answered by the “place of dialogue with nature” called a garden.

Positive about the future with a sense of responsibility as a creator

The process of creating a garden involves digging up stones and trees from the mountains, selecting them, and rooting their life into a new place. Where to place them and how to make the best use of them are the moments when the gardener’s skill and sensitivity are tested. Adjustments are made over and over again to ensure that the garden owner can spend a peaceful time in the garden.

When a tree grows, some people are happy about its growth, while others are sad that it covers up the surrounding stones. There is no one right answer, so I try to understand the unspoken feelings of the owner and always search for the best for the garden,” he said.

Sometimes a garden lives on even after the owner has passed away. That is why we have a responsibility to ensure that the stones and trees we install live long and healthy lives. Today, Mr. Ogawa continues his efforts to create a place that will be loved and cherished, so that the garden can continue to be a place where people and nature can coexist in harmony.

The post Designing a Good Relationship between People and Nature. The future as seen by Katsusho Ogawa, the twelfth generation of the Ueharu family/Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture first appeared on NIHONMONO.

Takashi Kita of “KITAWORKS” originates from a welding shop started by his father. The furniture he creates by combining iron, stainless steel, copper, brass, and other metals with wood, “minimalism is at the foundation of my work, and this is reflected in my work,” he says. How did he come up with the designs and delicate processing techniques that attract numerous space designers?

Attention-grabbing products

KITAWORKS designs and manufactures store fixtures, residential furniture, and interior furnishings, such as chairs with seats and backs formed from a single perforated stainless steel plate, tables with wood tops on extremely thin steel frames, and cabinets with brass frames, that are not only designed but also crafted down to the smallest detail. The furniture is designed and manufactured by “KITAWORKS”, and is crafted to the highest level of detail. These include the directly managed “ARTS & SCIENCE” store in Kyoto, for which Sonia Park serves as creative director; “LOG,” a hotel, café, bar, dining room, and store based on the concept of “living like you live,” and “VERVE” at Yebisu Garden Place in Tokyo. VERVE COFFEE ROASTERS” at Yebisu Garden Place in Tokyo, etc., and is also collaborating with the interior design company AXCIS on lighting fixtures and other products.

Originally an ironworks founded by his father

Tsuyama City, where KITAWORKS is located, is the third largest city in Okayama, located in northeastern Okayama Prefecture. The area has long been a transportation hub, and since the construction of Tsuyama Castle in the Warring States Period (1467-1568), it has served as the center of the surrounding area, and the atmosphere of a castle town remains strong today.

The origin of KITAWORKS is an ironworks founded by Takashi Kita’s father in 1978. When he was 30 years old, he decided to teach himself woodworking in order to build furniture and fittings for his new home. After making several pieces by combining frames made at an ironworks and wood, he was asked to make them by friends who had seen them. At a time when the number of orders for machinery and equipment was decreasing, he decided to take on this project in earnest, hoping that it would become his business.

Finding a balance between functionality and appearance

When the company switched from manufacturing machinery and equipment to furniture and interior design, the key point was to reconcile the functionality and appearance of the product. For example, a chair to be delivered to a factory must be sturdy and free from defects. However, chairs used in daily life should be functional and stylish at the same time. The search for such a compromise was the beginning of the “KITAWORKS” style.

Minimalism at the core

When Mr. KITA thinks about designing new furniture, he often starts with the form. The “KITAWORKS” style appears in the way the strength of the structure that realizes the form is maintained. Take the example of a cabinet with a glass panel inlaid in an iron frame, for example, a “support” is made in the thin frame to fit the glass. A groove is made in the steel, and the four sides of the glass are wrapped in a rubber band to hold it in place. However, Mr. Kida easily overcame this difficulty and hid the fixing rubber so that it could not be seen from the outside to make the overall appearance more neat and tidy. This is achieved by digging a deeper groove and deeply fitting the glass.

This process, he says, is “like eliminating unnecessary lines and thickness. When he first started making the cabinet, his glass supplier gave him advice on how far he could go with the processing, and he was able to achieve this detailing. I want to make the form I have in mind a reality. So I make it once, and if something is missing, I correct it and reinforce it. Finding little decorations and beautiful angles for lines is part of the process. “I have an intuitive feeling that if I push the envelope, it will become minimalist,” he says. Minimalism is at the root of who I am, and I think it is reflected in what I make,” he says.

What we can do in this factory is originality.

KITAWORKS” was launched in 2009 and gained recognition through its participation in the ‘Field of Crafts Kurashiki’ event held every May in Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture, where craftspeople from all over Japan gather. We get a lot of specific orders like, “Can you make something like this? Once an order was placed, the person introduced the product to his/her acquaintances, and the word of mouth spread, and orders began coming in from Hiroshima and Tokyo.

Currently, iron is the most commonly used material, and stainless steel, aluminum, brass, and other materials are often combined with oak. His furniture is also characterized by its painted iron finish, and is used in the bar at LOG in Onomichi City, which was created by Studio Mumbai, an internationally acclaimed exemplar of “slow design,” a concept that emphasizes the importance of taking the time and effort to produce good products in small quantities as opposed to mass production. The table was the first to be coated with lacquer. The tabletop is made of wood and the legs are made of iron, but when the lacquer is applied over the entire surface, the original materials and differences become indistinguishable, giving the table an unidentified, austere flavor in a space created from an apartment in the early 1960s.

As I began to make furniture, I began to look at furniture and architecture from around the world, and I actually used furniture that is considered a masterpiece, such as Hans Wegner’s Y chair in Denmark. The number of vintage furniture I liked also increased. Even so, the source of his designs is still within himself, as he continues to create things that he thinks are interesting. I live in the northern part of Okayama Prefecture near the mountains, and I think that if you look into the nature that I feel there, it becomes minimalist, and I think that is reflected in the furniture as well. What we can do at this factory is limited. But I think that is what makes it unique,” he says.

The production of the “LOG” table has spread the name “KITAWORKS” around the world. The company receives orders not only from Japan but also from overseas, and currently the ratio of orders to production is half and half. The company’s strength lies in the fact that ideas that come to mind can be immediately tried and tested at the factory. Sometimes they playfully create lighting fixtures, candle holders, toilet paper holders, and other items, seeking a balance between functionality, decoration, and a sense of object.

KITAWORKS’ craftsmanship is centered on minimalism, and its focus on form, “making things that look cool,” coexists with the pursuit of functionality that stems from its roots in its father’s ironworks. KITAWORKS has established a one-of-a-kind style through a process that fosters a sensitivity to combining materials by taking advantage of their characteristics and a processing technique that calculates even the smallest shades of detail.

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The town of Hakushu in Hokuto City is surrounded by nature in all four seasons, with the Ojira River flowing through the town, fed by the Southern Alps and Kaikomagatake. It was living in Sweden that marked a turning point for the two designers and inspired them to establish their studio, Atelier Yokuto, here.

Products” born in our daily lives

Atelier YOKUTO, located in Hakushu, Hokuto City, Yamanashi Prefecture, is composed of Jun Furukawa, who handles everything from design to production, and Yuka Sato, who is in charge of graphic design for websites and packaging. They produce a wide range of products, including interior goods and furniture. “Our base is wood, but we hope to create products that can be used both indoors and outdoors,” says Furukawa, “by flexibly using materials suited to each purpose. The idea starts with “what we want,” and the design is refined through repeated prototyping to complete a “product. For example, a mini-sized cutting board can be used as a simple table for mountain climbing or camping, carried in a pocket or backpack, or used as a tray for cutting fruits and other items for daily use. It is one of the products that Furukawa, who loves the outdoors, came up with when he thought, “I want one of these. He says, “I first try to make things that I notice in my daily life and think are interesting. If I think it looks good, I brush it up and give it shape.

It has been nine years since they launched their brand, and 11 years since they moved to Hokuto City. They chose Hokuto City as the base of their activities because of its moderate distance from Tokyo and the familiarity of country life in Sweden, where they went to study abroad, and felt that “the climate and atmosphere are similar.

What they got in Sweden

They studied architecture at the same art university. After graduation, Mr. Furukawa worked as a carpenter at a traditional construction company before becoming independent and renting a factory in Sumida-ku, Tokyo, to produce custom-made furniture, but he felt his self-taught nature was limiting him. At the same time, his partner, Mr. Sato, had also been independent from a design firm for several years and felt stuck. Feeling the need to learn something new, the two decided to study in Sweden. Mr. Furukawa studied furniture design and Ms. Sato textiles at HDK University in Gothenburg, Sweden, for about four years. The fact that Sweden has a good education and social welfare system was reassuring to them when they were studying abroad and raising their newborn son.

Scandinavian furniture is attracting attention around the world, and Sweden is the birthplace of major furniture brand companies that have recently gained popularity in Japan. Swedish furniture is made of natural materials such as birch and oak, and is characterized by its excellent design and practicality. The comfort is that the design is smoothly incorporated into the product because of the rationality in terms of usability and the very close proximity between the designer and the production side. I saw the ideal I had envisioned for some time, and I thought again that I would cherish this relationship when I returned to Japan,” Furukawa recalls.

Ideas from traditional Japanese minka houses

In addition to the excellent design process of Swedish furniture, the brand concept was also influenced by a renewed awareness of the “goodness of Japan. The architecture and lifestyle of a foreign country made Mr. Furukawa rethink the “traditional Japanese minka” in depth. For example, the “tano-za-zukuri” style of traditional Japanese minka is usually divided by fusuma (sliding doors) or shoji (paper sliding doors), but by removing the partitions, the structure can be converted into one large space. In this way, the traditional Japanese minka is highly variable, and “I realized that the Japanese had a very rational way of living while flexibly accepting nature,” says Furukawa.

Most of the old Japanese furniture could be carried. If you put a chabudai on the floor, it becomes a living room for eating, and if you put a futon on the floor, it becomes a bedroom. Inspired by this, one of the concepts behind Atelier Yokuto’s products is that they are mobile and can be carried around.

The foldable table is easy to carry like a “chabudai,” and is also useful outdoors. Atelier JOKUTO’s products are a fusion of Scandinavian rationality and Japanese lifestyle, inspired by the traditional Japanese minka style that flexibly utilizes living space.

Newly proposed “Okamochi” in the modern age

The product they introduce is “Okamochi,” which they say “best embodies the brand concept. The traditional “Okamochi,” which was first used to carry meals during outdoor work such as rice planting and later used for delivery, has been redesigned in a modern way to store and carry daily tools. Its uses vary depending on the person using it, from serving meals at inns and hotels, including catering, to storing business tools for remote work, hair and makeup tools, sewing boxes, and more. The idea came about when he was living in Sweden and his children’s miniature cars were growing and he made them to help them learn to put them away. Mr. Furukawa recalls the time of development: “There are many boxes with handles in the world, but I was very impressed with Okamochi in Japan, where they were made to carry food.

With a focus on weight reduction, the product is made of paulownia wood, which has long been used as a lightweight material for chests of drawers and storage boxes, and aluminum for the handle. The Okamochi can be customized with a variety of options, including a shallow box and a lid that can also be used as a tray. The Okamochi is the basic module of Atelier Yokuto, and can be used in conjunction with other products. When we make small items, we design them with the idea that they will fit into this Okamochi. It’s fun to be able to use them in combination, because it opens up so many possibilities,” says Furukawa. Sato adds, “You can create unexpected combinations.

New Connections Expanded through “Monozukuri

Recently, they have been collaborating more and more with different industries. One such collaboration is with BEAU PAYSAGE, which produces unique natural wines in the Tsugane district of Hokuto City. BEAU PAYSAGE’s wines, which are made using natural farming methods and brewing with wild yeast, are distributed only to a limited number of markets and are not easily available. In addition to the quality of the wines, owner Eishi Okamoto’s philosophy of environmentally friendly, “hands-off” winemaking has won the hearts of connoisseurs in Japan and abroad, and is highly regarded. As part of BEAU PAYSAGE’s efforts, one barrel of empty wine barrels are upcycled into cutlery and other products every year, and this project has already been conducted for the fourth time. Okamoto said, “When you work alone, your ideas tend to be biased, so it is important to connect with various people.

The connection with Mr. Okamoto has further developed into a new collaboration with L’Effervescence, a French restaurant in Nishiazabu, Tokyo, on the occasion of its 10th anniversary. L’Effervescence, which incorporates traditional French techniques with Japan’s seasonal nature and culture to create cuisine with a unique aesthetic, is a restaurant that has earned three Michelin stars and is a hot topic among gastronomes. Chef Shinobu Namae’s order was for a knife rest that could hold both chopsticks and knives, using BEAU PAYSAGE wine barrels. Mr. Furukawa, who was actually involved in the design and production, said, “It is interesting and very instructive to make things while listening to people from different industries,” and then added, “I am now working in two directions: what I want to propose at Atelier Yokuto and what I want to make with someone through collaboration. This is one of the driving forces for me now,” he said, happily describing the positive impact on his work that responding to fresh ideas and needs has had.

Love the design

When the duo moved to Hokuto City, their brand had just been launched and was not well known, so they had to start from scratch and faced many difficulties not only in sales channels but also in procuring subcontractors and materials for production. Although Yamanashi seems to be rich in lumber resources, lumber mills in the prefecture handle softwoods such as cedar and cypress for building materials, but hardwood lumber suitable for furniture making is not commonly found. For this reason, they use domestic and imported timber from around Japan. In the past few years, a forestry company in Hokuto City, where the studio is located, has opened a logging market for woodworkers in the area, using wood from logs that had previously been used for chips or firewood, and logs are now available. However, the logs cannot be used in the production process in their raw, moist state, so they are made into boards at a sawmill in the city, and then trucks must be rented to and from Nagano Prefecture to dry the boards. There are many issues to be addressed in terms of efficiency and cost in the cycle from procurement of lumber to sawmilling, and Furukawa feels that it is necessary to establish a cooperative system with local competitors and lumber dealers. This movement is led by a woodworker friend of his, and is still working on the issues and expanding further.

In the production process, some parts are outsourced, but Furukawa feels that there are issues regarding the volume of production.

If we could increase the number of subcontractors, we would be able to devote more time to product development. After all, I love design.

Atelier YOKUTO’s concept of “monozukuri

I don’t want to define my style or vision too much. I hope that you can sense my intentions in the products I will create in the future.

This is typical of Furukawa, who is known for his flexible approach to manufacturing and ideas that come to him in the course of daily life. For example, the wall storage furniture, which allows users to freely create storage space by installing iron bars with hooks on the wall and hooking various sizes of boxes and shelves to them, was actually incorporated into his own residence, which Sato designed four years ago. The wall storage furniture was actually installed in Sato’s own residence, which he designed and built four years ago. “Actually using the furniture has given me new ideas,” says Furukawa, who is enjoying the new idea of freely arranging his home space with furniture.

Products that come alive when used

I am not interested in making things that already exist, so I will only give shape to things that I feel are meaningful to make that have not yet been discovered.

Mr. Furukawa’s free and flexible ideas for new products based on his own life gave us a glimpse of the future possibilities of “monozukuri.

The two call Atelier Yokuto’s products, with their combinable modules and customizability, “furniture with the user’s participation. We want to create products that allow the user’s ideas and concepts to come to life freely,” they said. They design their products not by considering the “form” of the product, but by considering “devices” that do not hinder the possibilities of how the product can be used. When a product reaches the customer and is used in a way they did not intend, they feel happy that they have “communicated with the user through the product. Atelier Yokuto’s goal is not to own things, but to design products that enrich people’s lives through their use. We are sure that we will be surprised by the unexpected hints hidden in their products.

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Founded in 1848, Ueya Kato Landscaping Co., Ltd., headquartered in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City, has a history spanning over 170 years. Throughout its long history, the company has been responsible for the design and maintenance of many famous gardens, including the Hojo Garden of Nanzen-ji, which is designated as a National Scenic Site, the Shosei-en Garden, a detached garden of Higashi Hongan-ji, the Chishaku-in Garden in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto, often referred to as the “first of the Eastern Mountains,” and more recently, the garden of Hoshinoya Kyoto, a top brand of Hoshino Resorts. The eighth-generation head of the company, Tomonori Kato, also serves as a professor at Kyoto University of the Arts and is involved in designing Japanese gardens.

Landscape architects designing for ageing

Mr. Kato was born and raised in Kyoto City in a family of landscapers who create and maintain Japanese gardens, mainly for shrines and temples. Founded by Kichibee Kato I and serving as the official gardener for Nanzenji Temple, the company has been in the landscaping business for eight generations. Kato’s relationship with the aforementioned Nanzenji Temple is particularly deep. When Jiro was the fifth generation, he worked with his sons, Yasuoshi and Sueo, to create the western garden (Jyoshin-tei) and the northern garden (Rikudo-tei) facing the small hōjō, a designated national treasure at Nanzenji Temple, and when Yajusui became the sixth generation, he created the Kegon garden at the temple. It was only natural that Mr. Kato, who grew up watching the backs of his great grandfather and father, would pursue a career in landscaping.

After studying at Chiba University’s Faculty of Horticulture, he joined the family business and has been involved in landscaping ever since his 20s. Today, in addition to teaching garden research at Kyoto University of Arts, he gives numerous lectures in Japan and abroad and has received numerous awards, including the “Award of the Landscape Architecture Society of Japan,” which is considered the most prestigious award in the field of landscape architecture. He is truly an expert in his field who goes beyond the scope of his work and contributes to the development of landscape architecture in Japan.

Mr. Kato always keeps one thing in mind when engaging in landscaping. This is to maximize the individuality of the garden and design it to change over time. In addition to the traditional techniques of garden design and management that he has cultivated over generations as a landscaper in Kyoto, a city with many shrines and temples, he also actively uses CAD (computer-aided drafting) to design paving stone unit construction methods, which he uses not only in Japanese gardens but also in modern architecture.

Creating and nurturing. How the landscaping industry should be

Mr. Kato’s concept of “designing even the changes over time” mainly refers to the care of plants.
Mr. Kato defines this as “designing a garden from scratch,” and he believes that in the landscaping business, the importance of nurturing and managing the landscape over a long period of time, taking into account the importance of designing the garden space from scratch, is even more significant.

Incidentally, at Ueyakato Landscaping Co., we call the cultivation and management of gardens ”fostering”. The company calls it “fostering,” which is derived from the word “foster.” The company believes that “fostering the landscape is the true management,” rather than simply maintaining the appearance of the trees.

Rooted in the region where Important Cultural Landscapes are located

The gardens of Nanzenji Temple, which Ueyakato Landscaping Co. has been involved with since he was the first owner of the temple, are indispensable in the cultivation and management of Ueyakato Landscaping Co.. The garden at “Daneiken,” one of the non-public cultural properties that are not open to the public except for special openings, is a kaiyushiki style garden with a pond at the center, and is a unique example of a karesansui (dry landscape garden), in which stones and rocks are used to express the flow of water, and a simple garden with a pathway for entering a tea ceremony room, which is called a “kare-sansui” garden. Unlike open-air gardens, these gardens are rich in natural scenery with beautiful flowing water and plants. The garden has been cultivated and managed by Ueyaya Kato Landscaping Co.
Of course, Mr. Kato himself has been involved with Daneiken since he was an apprentice craftsman, and he has learned about plants and the nurturing of the natural landscape through the example of his predecessors.

The area surrounding Nanzenji Temple is home to many traditional architectural structures and beautiful gardens, so much so that the entire area has been selected as an important cultural landscape as part of the “Cultural Landscape of Okazaki, Kyoto.

One of the major reasons for this is the Kamichicho Ordinance, which was promulgated in 1871 to take away the fiefdoms of feudal lords and Hatamoto (feudal warlords) to bolster the strapped finances of the shogunate.
The vast estates of shrines and temples were taken away, and the grounds of Nanzenji Temple, which were approximately 200,000 tsubo in area, were likewise converted to public property. Aritomo Yamagata, who served as the third Prime Minister of Japan, built a villa called Murin’an, and in 1890 (Meiji 23), using the Lake Biwa Soso (Canal) that was drawn to the Kyoto side, he created a Japanese garden with a rich natural setting, adding a dynamic flow of water.
The people of the time were strongly attracted by the natural landscape, which looked as if it had been cut out of nature. This was the beginning of a growing demand in the area for what is now called “luxury subdivisions with modern Japanese gardens. The number of villas of wealthy people, including former zaibatsu families and presidents of major corporations, increased rapidly, and many gardens that would later be called famous gardens were created.

Mr. Kato has trained and studied in these places. He has gained a great deal of knowledge from his many years of experience, which is unique to the landscaping business rooted in this area.

Facing and leaning toward the individuality of the garden

That being said, there are many gardens in Kyoto that stand out for their individuality. Many of them were created by cultural figures from long ago as Kamigata, and there are as many originalities as there are combinations of cultures, topography, seasons, etc., according to the history of the area.
In some cases, the garden was created hundreds of years ago and the creator has already passed away, so he is often entrusted with only the cultivation and management of the garden.

In such cases, Mr. Kato tries to find the most beautiful time in the garden’s history from the time of its creation to the present, in other words, its “golden age. He considers what kind of golden age this garden had and how best to express and cultivate it.
Although there is no school of gardening like tea ceremony or ikebana, the lifestyle of each period is often reflected in the garden, and if one can read the intention of the garden, it will be easier to reproduce.
For example, in the Zen period, people favored a stoic, unadorned garden that reflected the philosophy of the time, while in the Azuchi-Momoyama period, people favored a grand, ornate garden to show the majesty of the powerful of the time. Of course, styles varied according to the sects of shrines and temples.
Taking these elements into consideration, I hear that inspiration comes from respectfully leaning on the work of our predecessors.

The mindset of “Anjojo Yoroshiku” passed down from generation to generation

How were these knowledge and skills handed down?
Mr. Kato has read and studied all the literature on landscaping, including “Sakuteiki,” the oldest gardening book in Japan, but the basic knowledge he has learned in the course of his work has remained unchanged since his predecessors and predecessors, and is mostly passed down orally.

For example, he learned from his predecessors, either orally or through gestures, how to prune a pine tree leaf in such and such a way that the leaf will open up during the growth process, and he put this knowledge into practice. During his apprenticeship, he was conscious of “learning from tradition and learning from fellow workers” as his keywords, and sensed by feeling what could not be written down.
In today’s society, one might say that it is outdated to work without clear standards, but he understands that this is true not only for the landscaping industry, but for Japanese manufacturing in general.
I have worked hard in my daily work, analyzing in my own way the “anjo yoroshu = finish the work in a good way” from my seniors.

Incorporating High Technology into Traditional Techniques, Japanese Gardens Go to the Future and Abroad

In recent years, the number of foreign clients has also increased. Nevertheless, this is not the first time that foreigners have become interested in Japanese gardens.
In the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1568-1600), João Rodrigues, a Portuguese missionary who was engaged in missionary work in Japan, wrote in his literature that he heard a phrase he heard when he visited a Japanese garden in Sakai, which he called “a yama-i in the city. He praised the Japanese concept of beauty, which was to create a garden in the middle of a large, prosperous city in the middle of a mountainous landscape that would give the impression of being in the middle of a mountain.
Even today, his sense of beauty is highly appreciated around the world, which is why he follows the teachings of his predecessors, reads the topography and direction of the land, uses local plants and trees in foreign lands where native Japanese species do not grow, incorporates the direction of the rising sun and climate, and creates Japanese gardens in pursuit of Japanese quality.

Although Mr. Kato values tradition in this way, he is not averse to modern technology.
In fact, the latest technology has brought some benefits to the landscaping industry.
For example, heavy machinery has made it possible to create gardens with a much smaller number of people and in a shorter time than before, and surveying equipment has made it possible to restore old gardens that were excavated with a high degree of accuracy, with less than 10 mm of misalignment after the removal and reinstallation of landscape stones. In the past, if even a single garden stone could not be perfectly restored to its original location, it would be considered “destruction of a cultural asset,” but by combining modern technology with traditional techniques, this problem can be solved.

Since it is now possible to do things that were not possible even for the famous garden masters of the past, such as Muso Soseki and Kobori Enshu, whom Mr. Kato admires and respects, I feel that even the most advanced technology is wonderful.

However, relying on state-of-the-art technology may lead to the loss of traditional techniques, and as long as I am involved in Japanese gardens, I would like to value the old techniques that were used before the era of rapid economic growth.

Passing Tradition and Know-How to the Future. Passing the baton to future generations.

Mr. Kato has always believed that “while respecting tradition, I also want to take on innovative challenges as much as possible. Mr. Kato always thinks, “While respecting tradition, I also want to take on innovative challenges as much as possible.

He believes that even if something is an innovative challenge today, if it is called a traditional technique 100 years from now, he will have left something behind for future generations.
It is important to completely burn oneself out as a craftsman, but it would be even better if one could pass on to future generations what one has spent a lifetime accumulating. Fortunately, an increasing number of young people are interested in the traditional industry and want to work in the landscaping industry.

While valuing the spirit of these 2021 craftsmen, we also believe that we need to update the system to make it easier for young people to understand in order to pass it on to the next generation, and the entire company is working on implementing the SECI model (a framework for sharing the knowledge and experience of individuals throughout the organization).

He is also working on implementing the SECI model (a framework for sharing the knowledge and experience of individuals with the entire organization) throughout the company. While saying, “Please take care of it nicely”, he is also conveying the traditional techniques, knowledge, and thoughts he has learned to young people today in a way that is friendly to them. He is committed to preserving the beauty of Kyoto’s unique natural landscape and historical culture for future generations.

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Hirosaki summer tradition “Neputa”

When you think of summer in Hirosaki City, Aoyama, Neputa comes to mind. Soul-stirring and glamorous Neputa depicting warriors from historic stories such as ”Romance of the Three Kingdoms”, ”Water Margin” and ”Genpei War” parade around the castle town of Hirosaki. The number of Neputas in varying sizes is said to total 80, and their overwhelming impact captivates all who come to view them.
　In 1980, Hirosaki Neputa was designated Important Intangible Folk Cultural Assets. There are several theories as to the origin of Neputa with none of them being very clear, but it is often said that they started from a farmers event called ”Nemuri Nagashi” or ”flushing away the drowsiness”. The event was held to take away the drowsiness during farm work and warding off disaster from the village. It is said that ”Nemuri Nagashi” became ”Nemuta Nagashi” and eventually changed into ”Nemuta”, finally becoming ”Neputa”

The Powerful Pictures of Warriors

Neputas in Hirosaki are mostly fan shaped. Only 10% of the Neputa in Hirosaki are the paper mache style common in Aomori Neputa. Fan shaped Neputas are decorated with a ”kagamie” in the front depicting heroic warriors, and ”miokuri” in the back with a drawing of a woman for contrast. They liven up Hirosaki summers with their subtle and profound ambience.
We visited Neputa painter Donryu Miura, who is also chairman of the Tsugaru Nishikie Artists Association. When we interviewed him, there were pictures of warriors was spread out all over the floor. ”In a typical Japanese painting or Nishikie (color woodblock print), there wouldn’t be so many warriors in the same space. But Neputa has to be powerful. I draw powerful pictures with deformation specific to Neputa. That is the appeal as well as the difficulty.” Miura told us.

The temperament of the locals are illustrated

”There are Neputa in Aomori, Hirosaki and the standing Neputa in Goshogawara. Are there characteristics that are specific to each event?” asked Nakata. ”They are completely different.” answered Miura.
”In Hirosaki, the town was built around the castle, so they created Neputa to be observed by the lord. So there is a warrior temperament, and.. bloodshed is considered cool. In Hirosaki, heroic drawings are the preference.”
During workshops, Miura is committed to passing on the skills and tradition to the next generation. There is a kindergarten where he draws a Neputa picture in front of the children every year. ”I can see the children’s eyes light up as I’m drawing.” he told us with great pleasure. Miura’s beaming face left a lasting impression.

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Making Friends

Many are familiar with the calligrapher responsible for the title calligraphy for the NHK drama “Tairano Kiyomori”. It was written by a female calligrapher, Shoko Kanazawa, born in 1985. Shoko was born with Down’s Syndrome. Her mother Yasuko, also a calligrapher, opened a calligraphy school in hopes that it would help Shoko make friends. Shoko began calligraphy with her friends, learning from her mother. This was when Shoko was 5. She has continued ever since.
She held her first exhibition when she was 20, and she became widely known as the media introduced her beautiful energetic letters.

Writing for People’s Happiness

According to Yasuko, Shoko began writing large letters and performing in front of people after her first exhibition.
“She seems to become motivated in front of a large crowd, because her desire is to make people happy.” Nakata asked upon hearing this,
“Calligraphy requires a lot of concentration, which Shoko is good at?”
“Yes, She prays for a while before she actually starts writing. 1 or 2 full minutes when people are watching. She seems to be able to concentrate more when there are people.”
Yasuko continues, “Shoko has Down’s Syndrome, so she cannot choose which letters to write. That is something that she lacks as a calligrapher. Shoko does not understand the logic. I guess it’s more like she senses it. For example, I have never tried writing large letters. So, I have never taught her. But Shoko naturally knows how to balance the letters. There are many good calligraphers. But many write the ideal script, nothing derived from deep in their soul.”

Collaboration Between Shoko Kanazawa and Nakata

We ask Shoko to write the word, “飛翔” (taking flight) for us. She holds the big brush with both hands. The paper is about the size of 1 tatami mat. She dips the brush in calligraphy ink and places the brush on the paper. She starts writing in large bold strokes, completing the amazing letters.
“OK. So can you write soccer?” Shoko asked Nakata.
“That’s impossible. I can’t write soccer. I’ve never tried this before!” Nakata said, as he picked up the brush.
Shoko, Yasuko, and the staff all joined in as they chatted. “That’s unbalanced.” “Seems somewhat lonely.” “It looks fine.” “Oh yeah, sure! (Laughter) “It’s difficult.” “No, it’s not!” As the conversation continues many completed “飛翔” letters appear.
Yasuko told us, “When Shoko was born, I was told that she has no intelligence and that she would never learn to walk. It brought great sorrow, and I cried every day while I raised her. I regret having brought her up that way. Since we’ve been able to meet a lot of people through calligraphy, now I’ve come to a point where I’m almost thankful that Shoko was born with Down’s Syndrome. I believe we give hope to other children and mothers in the same situation.”

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Handwriting “Happy Birthday”

”I want to be able to hand write ”Happy Birthday” neatly.” Because we use text and email messages every day, there is a desire to hand write special messages to convey our true feelings. It makes you happy to be on the receiving end. I think everybody relates to this.
“That’s what people say who come to my class. Some want to learn how to write their names beautifully. I think that’s really wonderful. This is what I refer to as “script for use”. As people get used to writing, they begin to pursue the beauty in the curves and space, or “script as art”. When you reach this level, you become intrigued.”
Harue Yahagi told us. ”Script for use” is for practical use, like Nakata’s “Happy Birthday” message. Once you’re able to write beautiful letters, you start to understand the charm of the letters. “I want to write beautiful letters,” eventually becomes “I want to express more through writing”.

Teaching Calligraphy at Harvard University

After Yahagi graduated college, she studied Chinese characters under Teshima Yukei and Japanese kana characters under Machi Shunso. After being awarded at the Fine Arts Exhibition, she held her first solo exhibition in 1974. After this, she traveled around Japan, then around the globe, with her exhibition. Her soft gentle expressive calligraphy has attracted people around the world. For 3 years from 1989, she worked as an assistant professor at Harvard University in the Oriental Art History Department. Many of her students first came out of curiosity for oriental art, then start to become engrossed with calligraphy.
As Yahagi mentioned, many people probably want to improve their handwriting. So we asked what she wants students to learn first.
“First, I want them to learn the beauty of letters. It is visibly beautiful, whether it be written in kaisho-style or gyosho-style. I want them to see the gracefulness of the lines, shapes, and the space in between.” When actually practicing, it is most important to “write sentences”. It is important to become accustomed to writing, and then pouring your feeling and emotions into the letters.

Making it legible to express sensation

We ask Yahagi to write the word, ”笑” (laughter).
“If you write the letter ”笑” like a square, it won’t be interesting. Emphasizing one line will make a difference. So I do rough drafts first, and from there, I get ideas.” Ms Yahagi told us. However, it’s difficult for the untrained person to know how freely they can be with the shape of the letters.
Nakata asked, “Is there a rule?” Yahagi replied “The only rule is that it needs to be legible. They are letters, so you need to write it correctly to an extent. That is the only rule. You express yourself within this rule.” There is also a manual called the “Gotai Jirui” that explains about writing freehand in Japanese calligraphy.
Lastly, the all-too-familiar calligraphy lesson. The ”sensei” teaches Nakata how to write his name correctly ”中田英寿”.
“The rhythm is important.” Yahagi said, adding “Let’s add a bit of artistic taste.” With “Gotai Jirui” as reference, Nakata considers different ways to write ”英” and then selects one that he likes. There were 110 different ways to write ”寿”. Soon a one of a kind ”英寿” was completed.
“Very well done. You have great rhythm. And you are very open to advice. Aren’t you beginning to find this interesting?”
To this question, Nakata smiled on, looking at this calligraphy.

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Coming to the Shonan area

Souun Takeda is a well-known calligrapher for his various activities including appearances on TV. He has a studio and gives lessons in the Shonan area in Kanagawa Prefecture.
”You’re originally from Kumamoto. Why did you choose this area?” asked Nakata. ”To tell you the truth, I didn’t think I wanted to become a calligrapher. Takeda’s reply was surprising.
He studied calligraphy under his mother, Souyou Takeda, a calligrapher. One would get the impression that he was meant to be a calligrapher. But in reality, after graduating from the science department of an university, he worked in sales. He then decided to start on his own and found a large old house.
”I fell in love with the house because I could see a lot of work done by artisans. I immediately wrote a letter of resignation to my employer when I found the house,” Souun-san said as he looked back. He then started his activity as a calligrapher, teaching calligraphy and giving calligraphy performances on the streets.

To teach and to learn

Apart from carrying out creative activities as a calligrapher, he communicates with his students in his classes. He places emphasis on ”having fun” in his classes. He wants his students to be excited to learn calligraphy like sports or music. One would expect to start with the basics, moving on to advanced class, then finally on to original work when learning calligraphy. But in Souun-san’s classes, he teaches them all at the same time.
”It is difficult to determine whether a ’sho’ is good or bad. One can write very neatly or write with much originality. Calligraphy has a broad range and there is always room to study,” he commented. He would sometimes hold a ”bad writing” contest in his class. It is a contest of who can write the worst, literally. He would have his students challenge themselves to write without referring to the text.

Souun-san told us that he learns from teaching his students. ”For example, foreigners are impressed with the color of red ink. There are things you don’t notice when you are working by yourself,” and added that he wants to explore every possibility of calligraphy.

Enhancing his own writing

Nakata picked up a brush. He was going to practice writing his name ”Hidetoshi Nakata”. There are two important points. First is to study the calligraphy texts closely. People usually concentrate more on their hand movements and surprisingly do not study the text enough. You cannot concentrate on practice if you do not clearly envision the objective. That is why it is important to study the text as much as watching your hands.
The other point is to be conscious of your back. One tends to hold the brush too firmly, but just like in sports, it is not good to use too much strength. You should hold the brush lightly, so light that it might slip through your fingers, and be conscious of your posture. The pressure on paper should equal the weight of the brush.
After writing his name a few times, Nakata commented, ”I don’t like my writing.” ”That’s too bad,” Souun-san replied. Writing brings out the person’s character. ”The basics are important of course, but rather than copying the text, it is important to enhance your own writing.”

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Fostering the art of bonsai, and fostering bonsai artists.

In Saitama, Saitama Prefecture, there is a village called ”Bonsai Village”, indicating the deep relationship of Saitama Prefecture with ”bonsai”. Masahiko Kimura is a world famous ”bonsai” artist, making ”bonsai” in Saitama. He has received many glorious awards such as the Prime Minister’s Award, and he has been invited many times to give lectures about ”bonsai”, not only in Japan but throughout the world. There are many people who learned about ”bonsai” from him, and are now active as individual artists.
Kimura’s first impression is that of a serious and typical artisan. However the ”bonsai” he makes are very artistic, and therefore he is often introduced as an artist. Nakata was very impressed when he looked at his works and said, ”It looks as if the grandeur of natural landscape is concentrated in the pot.”

Where did “bonsai” come from?

So, where lies the origin of bonsai? When we come to think of it, we really don’t know. So, Nakata asked the question straight to Kimura. ”There was a culture called ”bonkei” in China.”, that is making a miniature landscape on a tray.”
”I suppose it began when people went to mountains and brought back trees they liked in vessels. It is said that it dates back some several thousand years. Then it came via Korean Peninsula to Japan some 5 to 600 years ago. Since then, it was developed by Japanese until today, and is now established as a culture unique to Japan.”

Nakata had more questions to ask. ”Are the trees taken from nature?”

”Yes, that’s right. The trees are taken from mountains, the kind of trees that would grow naturally on the precipitous cliffs. The trees originally grew in a very harsh environment without any water or nutrition, so they are special species that don’t grow very much.”
Nakata was very surprised to hear it. He thought that the trees are dwarfed by human hands, but they were special species that were planted as bonsai.

The works grow with age.

When a tree is taken from nature and planted in a pot, it can already be defined as a ”bonsai”. However, that does not make a work of art. It has to be shaped, pruned, and grown to become an art piece. An example of the change over the years was shown to Nakata and his staff, and they were very impressed by it.

They could understand very well that ”richness” of nature is growing within the pot. Kimura said that the Imperial Household Agency has a ”bonsai” that was loved by Iemitsu Tokugawa. That means it is about 400 years old. That may be exceptional, but there are bonsai that have lived for a few hundred years. Bonsai is something that changes and grows with time.

Kimura not only plant trees, but shave and shape the tree trunks, place stones to make trees grow from them. He created a ”world” within a ”bonsai”. In that artificial world, there exists nature that grows. Artificial world and nature; the charm of ”bonsai” may lie in the combination of the two.

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What calligraphy conveys.

Shiro Saeki serves as a documentation specialist in the Imperial Household Agency, and is the Emperor’s ”yuhitsu”. That means, he hand-writes the words and letters of the Emperor and the Empress on their behalf. He has received many honors and awards, teaches at a college, and is at the forefront of the world of calligraphy.
Needless to say, his calligraphy works are splendid. However, he says that ”As long as the characters are the medium, I think anything can become works of calligraphy.” He showed me a piece of work that depicts the image of aurora, which the letters ”kyokkou” (aurora) are written in colorful paints. It is more like a painting than a work of calligraphy, being colored and some designs are drawn. Looking at the letters ”kyokkou” alone cannot convey such an expansion of images. It may seem unconventional, but this is also a work of calligraphy, said Saeki.

Alphabets in oriental calligraphy.

”I want the young people to know that calligraphy doesn’t have to be so formal.” From this idea, he writes the lyrics of pop songs, too.

”There are English words in the lyrics, aren’t there?”, asks Nakata. An obvious question. Saheki writes the alphabets in the style of oriental calligraphy, and vertically, too, but it does not seem odd at all.

”There is a letter ”inochi”, for example, but it looks like as if it is composed of letters A, O, P, you see.” Very convincing.

How to write good handwriting.

After seeing Saheki’s works, Nakata was given a lesson to write his name with a calligraphy brush. According to Saeki, writing Hidetoshi Nakata is not easy.
”Nakata doesn’t have many lines, but Hidetoshi has many lines, so it not easy to get a good balance.”
Saeki says the No. 1 secret of good handwriting is balance. If you write the letters one by one, you cannot have good balance, so it is important to look at the characters ”Hidetoshi Nakata” as a whole.
The second secret is to make the vertical lines thick and horizontal lines thin. Generally, ”kanji” has more horizontal lines than vertical, so to make a good balance, vertical lines should be thicker. Also, it looks better when the right half of the ”kanji” is written thicker than the left.
With this advice, Nakata wrote his name. He was satisfied with the result. Nakata, who has many opportunities to write his name, said, ”Now I can write my name with confidence.”

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