KYOTO - Following an exhibition held in Kyoto during the 2025 Osaka Expo, traditional artisans from Vienna and Kyoto are strengthening ties, drawing inspiration from one another's work and expanding their connections with customers.
"Traditional products serve as a bridge to the past. When we touch them, we can feel the objects that embody the craftsman's heart and the knowledge of how to make them. These are not products that can be easily replaced," said organizer Nicola Rath, 52, who traveled from Vienna to Japan for the event last October.
Rath stressed the importance of regularly holding joint exhibitions with partners in Kyoto to pass down the skills and spirit of craftsmanship.
The event was held at the former main building of the Kyoto Prefectural Government Office, a national important cultural property.
It was adorned with a dazzling array of chandeliers, jewelry and traditional crafts such as Kyoto-style paper umbrellas and Nishijin-ori, highly specialized traditional silk brocade and yarn-dyed textiles.
Representatives from about 20 businesses from Austria and Kyoto took part and chatted with invited guests.
An artist from Vienna who was exhibiting a ceramic sculpture that had chipped during transport was deeply impressed after learning about "kintsugi" -- the traditional Japanese art of repairing broken pottery and decorating the repaired areas with gold -- during her visit to Japan.
Realizing that damage could be transformed into decoration through a shift in perspective, she said, "I don't have to be sad about it," adding that the experience would inspire her creativity.
The event was organized by Meisterstrasse, a Vienna-based portal site that connects around 5,000 workshops with customers worldwide.
It was the second such collaborative event between Austria and Kyoto, following one held in April 2025, when Rath, founder of Meisterstrasse and a member of the family that founded luxury glassware brand Lobmeyr, visited Japan before exhibiting works at the Osaka Expo.
Kayoko Nishikawa, 67, played a key role on the Japanese side as the third-generation president of Nishikawa Teizaburo Shoten, a Kyoto company that owns the nationally registered tangible cultural property residence where the April exhibition was held.
Rath and Nishikawa said the exhibitions are aimed at helping traditional industries overcome sluggish sales amid the proliferation of low-cost, mass-produced goods, as well as a shortage of people willing to take up traditional crafts.
To overcome these challenges, they stressed the need for international collaboration.
"Standing alongside traditional craftspeople from long-established workshops keeps me on my toes," said a young entrepreneur from Kyoto, referring to Lobmeyr and a 260-year-old jewelry workshop.
A carpenter from Obertrum, Austria, who participated in the April exhibition said that he and his team have been pursuing a concept similar to the Japanese philosophy of "wabi-sabi" -- finding beauty in imperfection, impermanence and simplicity.
He said he creates furniture based on the belief that even coarse wood grain adds character and becomes a unique feature of the work.
During the coronavirus pandemic in 2021, Rath was deeply moved by a virtual exhibition held by Nishikawa's company, which deals in Kyo-yaki and Kiyomizu-yaki pottery, noting the business creates innovative works using traditional techniques. Kyo-yaki and Kiyomizu-yaki refer to finely crafted handmade ceramics and porcelain produced in Kyoto.
Rath contacted Nishikawa through a mutual acquaintance, and the two have since developed a close relationship. They found common ground in their belief that the future of traditional crafts requires bold business initiatives, such as blending tradition with innovation.
Plans are also underway to hold an exhibition in Vienna in October and to unveil wares jointly developed by artisans from both cities in 2027.
