A Boyhood Spent Playing Outdoors

As a boy, Hatakeyama’s days revolved around playing outside. The moment he got home from school, he would toss his backpack aside and immerse himself in games like menko and che-ringu. His days were spent playing until dusk, drenched in sweat.

"When I was in elementary school, playing outside was the norm," he reflects. "Even when I came home, I almost never stepped foot inside the workshop."

For the carefree boy, the family's shippo-yaki business felt like a world away.

A First Encounter with the Family Business—The 'How Beautiful These Colors Are' Moment

The turning point came around the third grade, when he started helping in the workshop in between his playtime and homework.

The art of shippo-yaki involves applying a glassy enamel onto a metal base and firing it at temperatures around 800°C. Once polished, a spectrum of translucent, glass-like colors is revealed.

"I saw the finished pieces lined up on a wire mesh, and when I watched the reds, blues, and greens shimmer translucently in the light, I thought, 'Hey, this is pretty cool,'" he recalls.

While it started as just lending a hand, his heart was captured more and more each time he saw the works radiating with color after being fired.

Learning from His Father and Being Called 'a Natural'

Hatakeyama's father was his mentor. His teaching style wasn't to drill the techniques into him but rather to give him the freedom to explore, telling him, "Do it however you like." In this environment, his hands began to move naturally, and the skills came to him.

"It usually takes time to get things right, but for some reason, my pieces always came out well. My father told me, 'You have a knack for this,' and that gave me a huge confidence boost."

The fact that he quickly mastered polishing three-dimensional works, combined with his father's encouragement, nurtured his path as an artisan.

Choosing a Path: University and Beyond

Although the idea of succeeding his father had taken root by middle school, he didn't dive straight into the craft. He attended a general high school and later majored in commerce at university.

"Shippo-yaki was actually more popular in China back then," he explains. "I chose the commerce faculty because I thought it would be useful for doing business with China."

After graduating, he didn't even consider job hunting and joined the workshop without a second thought. That childhood memory of being captivated by the 'beautiful' colors had naturally led him down the artisan's path.

A Craftsman's Journey Forged in Play

Making shippo-yaki began as just a way to help out during his playtime. But captivated by the stunning colors and spurred on by his father's praise that he was 'a natural,' he eventually committed to becoming a craftsman.

The boy who once loved nothing more than playing outside has grown into a leading figure in the world of Tokyo Shippo, earning the title of 'Contemporary Master Craftsman'.