Black covering is difficult.

To make cut glass,
the artisan draws lines called waritsuke on the outside of the glass
and does the cutting while looking at them
from the inside of the glass.
In TOKYO NIGHT VIEW,
the black covering is about three times as thick as normal.
On top of this, the glass has a long, slender shape.
As a result, it is almost impossible to see the waritsuke lines.

The most difficult part is the imbricate pattern of
URBAN TRIANGLE.
To cut a pattern of straight diagonal lines
on the glass with a tapered shape,
the artisan did the cutting while turning and twisting the glass.

The extremely fine cut-glass lines
have a width of less than 2 millimeters,
or nearly one-third as wide as usual.

A slip of the knife can make the cut deeper.
The line will then immediately become thicker.
Because of the thickness of the cover,
this will make it harder to reach the transparent part.

To prevent slippage and excessive depth,
the artisan makes fine cuts a little at a time,
with pauses to check the work.

In the classic kiriko style,
patterns are only made on the upper part.
When cutting the lower part,
the artisan makes either rounded grooves
with a profile like kamaboko or straight lines.

TOKYO NIGHT VIEW, however, takes office buildings as its motif,
and kiriko patterns were cut into the glass over its whole surface,
from top to bottom.
For Kei Hosokoji, a traditional craftsman,
this was a challenging experiment.

TOKYO NIGHT VIEW requires about three times
as much work as ordinary kiriko glassware.

When I saw the initial design, there was no fine cutting
and it looked too simple.
It felt it might be a little too plain.

Once it was finished, however,
I thought that this glassware would also sell.
Indeed, it looked more stylish to me.
I felt my esthetic outlook had changed.
– Comment by Hosokoji

A metropolis with a host of high-rise buildings,
criss-crossed by streets.
TOKYO NIGHT VIEW expresses the Tokyo nightscape
in kiriko glassware colored black.

Edo Kiriko cut glass is one of Japan’s traditional arts.
The idea is that beauty resides in fineness.
On TOKYO NIGHT VIEW,
there float dynamic figures like structures over the whole space.

Hosokoji dreamed of becoming a painter
but thought he could not earn a living at it.
He therefore explored options for his future
while taking correspondence courses
at Tokyo University of the Arts.
Then he found himself enchanted
by the beautiful jewelry-like sparkle.
Deciding this was for him,
he plunged right into the world of artisans.

His forte is highlighting the pattern by the way
he removes the color from the covering glass.
He says he constantly thinks about how to bring out deepness
and show depth in the planar world of kiriko.

Hosokoji says that the production of TOKYO NIGHT VIEW
is also influencing the design of KAGAYAKI,
an old fashioned glass in black that he designed next.

The products will probably be even more dynamic.
All are eagerly waiting to see the next world he depicts.