Shigaraki Kenzo Tobo しがらき顕三陶芸倶楽部

Shigaraki is a town outside Kyoto rarely visited by tourists. You will mainly find ceramic kilns producing Shigarakiyaki, which are also possible to visit.

This ceramic, rough in appearance with a special feel to it, is used by experts to serve traditional kaiseki cuisine. It is very fashionable and evokes ancient forms of Japanese ceramics.

Shigaraki's popularity is all thanks to the work of master Kenzo Ogawa, who was brought ceramics back into fashion.

Finding a true master's workshop

It is precisely around the workshop where Kenzo Ogawa still works today that Shigaraki Kenzo Tobo made its name.

This is a special place located in the nature of the hills of Shigaraki, where visitors will be found immersed in a surreal atmosphere, that of the world of ceramics.

Kenzo Tobo offers a true practical and spiritual initiation to the art of Japanese ceramics.

A workshop welcomes lovers of the art with workshops that enable you to produce Shigaraki ceramics using a potters wheel or doing it by hand, working up until the final stages of glazing.

Students come to learn for the day under the supervision of assistants trained by Kenzo Ogawa.

The workshops last for 1 to 2 hours and you will have the opportunity to receive your work by mail once the long process of 6 steps glaze is completed (one month).

Workshop, cafe and guesthouse

There is also a guesthouse, unlike any other, where you can stay.

The accommodation is simple and rustic. The adjoining lounge offers both a relaxation room and a common room for dining and having a coffee. You will be served in Shigaraki ceramics, sometimes even in ones you have produced yourself, chatting casually with the artisans of the place. The atmosphere is relaxed and cordial.

Obviously you will also find a gallery featuring the works of the master and his assistants, unique pieces, because no two Shigaraki ceramics are identical.