Our Story
“Our story continues where Japan and China converge, two worlds carried within one soul.”
—
A message from Keita Yoshida, heir to a family legacy
The roots of Orient Ware Co. trace back to 1905, when my great-grandfather shipped a first crate of porcelain from Hong Kong to France. That modest beginning endured the turbulence of two world wars and later turned toward Southeast Asia and Japan, where the appreciation for fine craft remained strong.
I was born into this legacy, yet my path was shaped by something more personal. I grew up between Tokyo and Chengdu, with a Japanese father and a Chinese mother. Through them, I inherited the rare gift of living within two of the world’s oldest cultures, each with its own rhythm of life, each rooted in craft.
In Japan, I encountered artisans who had devoted lifetimes, indeed, generations, to a single workshop. Their patience was profound, their hands leaving a warmth upon every vessel, every tool, every surface. No piece was ever the same; each carried the subtle trace of its maker. In China, I witnessed embroiderers drawing entire worlds from a single thread, and ceramic masters listening in silence as Ru ware revealed its voice in the kiln, the delicate crackle that made each vessel singular, alive. These were not merely objects, but imprints of memory and devotion.
History reminds us that such treasures once journeyed across oceans, where porcelain, silk, and lacquer became emblems of refinement in Europe. Yet today, many of the workshops that once animated vibrant city streets have been pushed to the margins, overshadowed by the pace of industry. I have walked through Kyoto and Osaka, Suzhou and Xi’an, searching for the masters who remain, not out of nostalgia, but out of an unshakable belief that craft still holds meaning in the modern world.
Orient Ware Co. was born from this pursuit: to honor these legacies, to preserve their voices, and to carry them forward, not as relics of the past, but as living companions for the present. Just as the ports of Canton once sent wonders of artistry across the seas, I hope these objects will once again find their way into people’s lives, offering not only beauty, but also connection and continuity.
Objects of artistry, inherited for modern life.
