Takahiro Yagi

Kakaido

Metalworker

©Kaikado

Making tea caddies into heirlooms

Takahiro is a master in using tin to make traditional tea caddies
Tea caddy designs have not changed in nearly 150 years
A single caddy takes 130 to 140 steps to create

Kaikado is a metal working studio in Kyoto specialising in tea caddies, and Takahiro Yagi is its 6th generation metalworker. Since 1875, the workshop has been crafting softly sheened, sleek, minimalist tea caddies that are engineered to be opened easily yet airtight when closed to keep the contents dry and fresh. Takahiro is bridging the past and the future by applying traditional techniques to upcycle materials into tea caddies such as tin food cans with dynamic graphics. He collaborates with companies to design cans for various uses. He believes that his family's craft legacy is not only to make objects that can be enjoyed now, but for them to be lasting household items, almost an heirloom to pass on from one generation to the next.

Interview

©Kaikado

©Kaikado

What is your specialist technique?: It is a technique to make an airtight object by rounding a sheet of metal. I make a cylindrical object and rely solely on my craftsman's senses to determine how the lid and body will fit together.
What is your favourite part of the craft?: Receiving repair requests for old tea caddies. It is special because I can feel that the item has inherent value. The fact that people continue to use the caddies on a daily basis after generations is testament to the strength of the object itself.
Is there a memorable comment you received from a customer?: During the Great Kanto Earthquake, a customer who lost his home returned to the rubbles to find his tea caddy, and perfectly conserved tea inside. He was saved by the delicious tea and reminded us of the true value of our work.
How would you define your craft?: Churchill said, "The further backward you can look, the further forward you can see." What I create now is always conscious of the 150-year lineage of my craft. I try to see what I can do to connect tea caddy making to future generations.

Takahiro Yagi is a master artisan: he began his career in 2000 and he started teaching in 2005