ビジョン
Vision
A Platform for Knowledge and Discovery概要—知識と発見のプラットフォーム
Moss Kogei Kyoto is an annual cultural event dedicated to Japanese craft — known as kogei. The event's inaugural edition takes place October 16–18, 2026, at Shozan, a garden estate in Takagamine, Kyoto, whose history reaches back to the 17th century. Across Shozan's historic buildings and scenic moss garden, visitors can view exhibits by leading and contemporary kogei artisans, acquire work, take part in tea ceremonies and workshops, attend talk sessions, and enjoy tailored dining experiences. This event showcases Japanese traditional crafts across a wide range of fields, including porcelain, ceramics, lacquerware, woodwork, metalwork, glass, textiles, and washi paper.
Moss Kogei Kyoto's mission is to build an international platform for a deeper understanding and appreciation of kogei. It connects Japanese tradition with audiences at home and abroad, and fosters meaningful exchange among artisans, collectors and specialists, creators from other fields, and people who cherish everyday life. More than a marketplace, Moss Kogei Kyoto is an opportunity to cultivate an eye for beauty through craft, to consider the world around us, and to deepen one's understanding of the philosophy behind kogei works. Our larger ambition is to establish kogei as a global cultural category in its own right.
The Beauty in Use100年後の「用の美」
Since the postwar era, society has undergone profound transformation. If craft is a “mirror of society,” then we must contemplate, research, and challenge what “the beauty of use” means in this new age.
Through craft, this event seeks to address the great questions of our time — the environment, AI, gender, and history, and the lives of the people living through them.
And the beauty of use is lived, not only argued. To acquire a piece here is to meet the hands that made it — and the memory of that meeting enters the object, becoming part of its value as it takes its place in a life. This is what MOSS KOGEI is built to create: not a market of objects, but the encounter behind them.
What is beauty in the modern world? This is an occasion to trace the currents of the past and release the first drop of a stream that becomes the future.
Event at a Glance開催概要
| Event Name | MOSS KOGEI Kyoto |
|---|---|
| Subtitle | Yo no Bi — The Philosophy of Living Craft |
| Dates | Oct 17 (Sat) & 18 (Sun), 2026 |
| Setup | Oct 15, 2026 (Thu) |
| Teardown | Oct 19, 2026 (Mon) |
| Venue | SHOZAN KYOTO, 47 Kinugasa Kagamiishi-chō, Kita-ku, Kyoto |
| Description | Exhibition, sale, and hands-on experience of craft works from Japan. |
| Organizer | MOSS KOGEI Kyoto Executive Committee |
Committee実行委員会
Organizing Committee Chair
Ivan Vartanianアイヴァン ヴァルタニアン
Tokyo-based editor, curator, and author recognized internationally in photography and art publishing. Founded the publishing project Goliga in 2000. His works include Setting Sun: Writings by Japanese Photographers and Japanese Photobooks of the 1960s and '70s. He curates exhibitions and bridges photographic culture between Japan and the world.
Event Director, Organizing Committee
Matsuyama Kayo松山佳世
Born in 1973 in Takagamine, Kyoto. Raised surrounded by nature and artists, she deepened her reverence for the natural world through years living in Shiga. In 2025 she joined Shozan Resort, where she produced “Bamboo and Flowers,” a collaboration with the Belgian flower artist Daniel Ost. Now in planning and development, she carries forward the belief of her grandfather, the resort's founder, that a love of art is born from beautiful surroundings.
Event Director, Organizing Committee
Ota Mutsuko太田睦子
Editor and cultural producer based in Tokyo. After Waseda University, she worked in PR at Suntory and on the Marie Claire editorial team before covering art, photography, and culture for Esquire and GQ. In 2012 she launched IMA, Japan's leading art photography magazine, and oversees IMA online, the IMA Photobooks imprint, and exhibition direction.
Organizing Committee
Tsuchiya Kei土屋 繼
Born 1971. MBA, Keio University. Following A.T. Kearney and IT ventures (incl. two IPOs), served as president of a Cybozu subsidiary and a mid-sized interior firm. Founded Kuroitori and KT Partners. Now heads 3 companies, serves on multiple boards, and lectures at graduate school.
Advisor
Kitagawa Issay北川一成
Designer leading the Shozan Resort rebirth project. Under his direction, the spirit of Koetsu's original “Artisan Village” is being revived to create new cultural value for the modern era—weaving historical memory with contemporary design to establish a 21st-century Artisan Village.
Partnersパートナー
The MOSS KOGEI Kyoto website was created thanks to the generous cooperation of BASSDRUM.
