Mie Yokouchi

Born in 1982 in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japanese artisan Mie Yokouchi creates lacquer works using the specialist “Kanshitsu” technique. Mixing flour, wood, and soil powder with lacquer on linen cloth and Japanese paper she’s able to create a strong base for her work, which she then layers on to a mould usually made from wood or clay.

Inspired by nature and the thick, hard outer that can be achieved when layering lacquer, Mie says that her work comes alive and reminds her of bark or the earth’s crust itself. But above all her goal is to create beautiful objects, whilst being conscious about lacquer culture and continuing skills from past generations.