Kyo-takekogei/Bamboo Craft: Hideaki Hosokawa (Bamboo Bag Atelier KISETSU)
In 2011, I established my company, Bamboo Bag Atelier KISETSU, in the city of Kyoto. Since then, I have mainly made bamboo bags that use Kyoto's traditional weaving techniques. Until now, bamboo bags have overwhelmingly been seen as something that a woman in a traditional Japanese outfit would be holding in summer. However, KISETSU has brought forward products for settings you normally wouldn't picture them in; for example, clutches that match dresses and other Western clothes, men's briefcases for work, and suitcases that hold luggage for holidays. With this, we hope that many more people will have the opportunity to regularly use bamboo bags.
Profile
1974 Born in Tokyo Prefecture
2007 Graduated from Traditional Arts School of Kyoto (bamboo craft
major)
2011 Received the Kyoto City Mayor's Award at the 51st Kyoto Bamboo
Craft Exhibition
Received certification as a First Level Skilled Bamboo Worker
(braiding)
2013 Became a Certified Kyoto Traditional Products Craftsman (Kyo-
takekogei)
2014 Awarded first place at the Kyomono Youth Competition
Received the Mayor of Kyoto City Award at the Bamboo Craft
Public Entry Exhibition in Kyoto
2018 Received the Prime Minister's Award at the 2018 Japan's
Traditional Craft Competition
2020 Became certified as a Master Craftsman of the Future (Kyo-
takekogei)