Aizu Urushi Lacquerware

Aizu Urushi Lacquerware

Aizu Urushi Lacquerware has a very long history – predating lacquerware from Wajima or Tsushima. Aizu Lacquerware was originally produced in areas of Aizu that experience very heavy annual snowfall. The industry began to boom about 400 years ago - this development was initiated by feudal lord Gamo Ujisato’s endorsement of Aizu Lacquerware.

From then onwards, techniques used in the production of Aizu Lacquerware were refined and Aizu Lacquerware became very famous in Japan.  

You can make your paint your own design onto Aizu Lacquerware items, or even try painting with lacquer, in Aizu region.

Makie Painting Experience Workshops

Suzuzen (Aizu-Wakamatsu City)

Suzutake (Aizu-Wakamatsu City)

Bansho (Aizu-Wakamatsu City)

  • From 1,200 yen 
  • Irregular opening hours in winter
  • Website (Japanese)

Fukubun (Aizu-Wakamatsu City)

  • From 1,600 yen
  • Irregular opening hours
  • Must book in advance
  • Website (Japanese)

Shitsugei Tsunoda (Urabandai Area)

  • From 1,000 yen
  • They also have an experience where you can paint with real lacquer (From 10,000 yen)
  • Must book in advance
  • Website (Japanese)

Venue Details

Venue Details
Best SeasonAll Year
Related infoOpening hours, variety of lacquerware objects to paint, prices etc vary by workshop
Access Details
Getting there

Various workshops concentrated around Aizu-Wakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture

Useful Links

Try Your Hand at Designing Local Crafts

Chinkin Taiken (Sunken-Gold Design Experience)

Nearby

The World Glassware Hall
Cultural Experiences

Mori no Bunko Fuzawa

Mori no Bunko Fuzawa is a mountain village life workshop facility where guests can experience the lifestyle, nature, and charms of living in a Japanese rural mountain village. [photo id="wedA3wsHghGka5MbrORGYjRkj8BGAinlLCOG5O0L.jpg"] This building was a working school up to 40 years ago, the black board in one classroom where all of the students wrote their goodbye messages on the last day of school has been preserved as is. (If you visit, please be sure to avoid touching, erasing, or writing on the black board.) [photo id="fNNbYszCkKk3qvw1ozp5lY5yn8UDJPkrsrHf05Jf.jpg"] All three classrooms are available to stay the night in! Guests are charged per person, not per room, so if your group are the only ones staying the night then you are free to spread out into all three of the rooms. This is the kind of lodging that Japanese students would stay in on overnight school trips, so there is a sense of nostalgia when staying here.  There are also many different activities that you can experience when staying here, such as local and traditional craft making and even river trekking with local guides! Read more about river trekking experiences here. [photo id="YrRrT5cHuDe3wK75RWrxgat8d8JPQP9P7bQgJwuY.jpg"]

The World Glassware Hall
Outdoor Activities

Listel Ski Fantasia

Despite its modest size, Listel Ski Fantasia - located within the grounds of Hotel Listel Inawashiro - has been a FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup host since 1988, and was chosen as the mogul and aerial venue for the 2009 FIS Freestyle World Championship. Listel Ski Fantasia's main ski slope has an average gradient of 8 degrees, making it popular with beginners and family skiers. The "Kids' Land" ski area for children, onsite nursing rooms, and ski lessons available for children, make Listel Ski Fantasia a great choice for families.  

The World Glassware Hall
Arts & Crafts

Aizu Painted Candles Craft Experience

Aizu Erosoku (painted candles) are sumptuous items that were long-prized among samurai families. Delicate and vivid patterns such as chrysanthemums, plum blossoms, and peonies are painted onto candles made of natural Japan wax extracted from the fruits of lacquer trees. Each candle is still painstakingly painted one by one, and they serve as regal decorations in Shinto and Buddhist ceremonies and weddings. A candle painting experience is available at Ozawa Candle Shop (Reservation required).

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Chinkin Taiken (Sunken-Gold Design Experience)
Arts & Crafts

Chinkin Taiken (Sunken-Gold Design Experience)

The Tradition of Aizu lacquerware in Fukushima Prefecture has continued for 400 years. Try out creating a design on Aizu Lacquerware with a technique called Chinkin ("Sunken-gold") at Tsunoda Lacquer Art Studio. Sketch your design on tracing paper, and then mark it onto the lacqerware with a needle. Tsunoda san will help you fill the grooves created by your needle with gold and silver powder to create your design. Alternatively, try painting your own design on Aizu lacquerware at the studio. Either experience will create a great souvenir of your trip in Japan. These experiences take about an hour.

The World Glassware Hall
Arts & Crafts

The World Glassware Hall

The World Glassware Hall is located at the foot of Mt. Bandai, by the side of Lake Inawashiro.About 25,000 handmade glassware items, imported directly from countries all over the world, are exhibited and sold at the World Glassware Hall the museum. You can even try your hand at glass etching, or glass blowing.Next to the Glassware Hall is a local beer brewery and a sweets shop. Local Inawashiro beer has received the gold prize in an international beer competition, and can be purchased on site. In the sweets shop, you can try a line up of famous local delicacies.

Paint Your Own Akabeko
Arts & Crafts

Paint Your Own Akabeko

What is 'Akabeko'?The akabeko legend started at Enzoji Temple in Yanaizu Town, in the Aizu region. The construction of this temple began in the year 807, but due to a huge earthquake at the end of the seventeenth century, it had to be repaired in 1617. It was during the reconstruction of the temple that the akabeko became a folk legend.It is said that moving the wood and other supplies necessary for the reconstruction work was incredibly difficult because materials had to be transported from various villages upstream of the Tadami River. The materials were heavy and the journey to the temple was long. Cattle were used to transport materials, but many struggled to bear their loads.Then, out of nowhere, appeared a cow with a red coat. (It should be noted that, in the past, the word ‘red’ was used to describe the color ‘brown’, so it is likely that it was a brown cow.) The red cow supported the other cows and helped the priests who were constructing the temple until it was completed. Then, it suddenly vanished.'Akabeko' means 'red cow' in the local dialect.A number of statues of the cow were built inside the temple grounds so that the people of Yanaizu could express their gratitude to the akabeko.In the years following, there was a range of legends about the akabeko, with stories such as families who owned akabeko being rid of sickness upon stroking the cows. They continued to hold their status of bringers of good luck and strength. Families bought or made akabeko toys for their young children to play with.Akabeko Painting ExperiencesIn recent history, the Aizu tradition of painting akabeko began. It is said that this tradition started as something to do for children visiting Aizu-Wakamatsu City as part of school trips. This was when the story of the Akabeko evolved once more, into its newest papier-mâché form. The stripes on the face and back of the papier-mâché Akabeko are said to represent strength and perseverance.There are a number of workshops in Aizu-Wakamatsu City where you can paint your own Akabeko. Most workshops offer the standard red, white, and black paint. These talismans for good health make very cute and lightweight souvenirs to take home for family and friends – or keep for yourself! Those who prefer to buy a ready-painted Akabeko will be able to find it at most souvenir shops.BookingIf you would like to book an akabeko painting experience at the Tsurugajo Kaikan (a shopping complex located next to Tsurugajo Castle), please access this page.

Makie Painting at Suzutake Workshop
Arts & Crafts

Makie Painting at Suzutake Workshop

Suzutake workshop tours began in the 1950s as a way of providing families with a chance to learn about the history and artistry of lacquerware. Even today, visitors are able to actually see artisans at work at three key stages of the Aizu lacquerware making process: 1) applying a base layer of unrefined lacquer or astringent liquid to wood; 2) adding additional layers of lacquer in a desired style, and 3) adding hand-drawn delicate designs ('makie') using either colored lacquer or gold and silver power (a technique called 'Sunken gold makie'). Visitors can also take part in a makie-painting experience.

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