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Mashiko Folkcraft
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Garage
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
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7 reviews for Mashiko Folkcraft
Sadly, the old man died shortly after I wrote my last review. The shop was closed for a while, then reopened. A friend of his took it over and is trying to keep up the spirit of the store, stocking it with antiques and handcrafts from respected factories in Japan.
It's probably for the better, for the casual visitor. All the "do not touch" signs are gone and you can even handle the merchandise now. I was reluctant, as if the old man's spirit were going to scold me. The place seems a little cleaner, more organized, less cluttered. A heaviness that hung over the place is now gone.
But I do miss him, only though I met him once. It's not quite the unique place it was. The bowls and cups, trays, vases and small furniture are still first-rate, collectible things, handmade, one-of-a-kind. But they come without the long explanations and anecdotes of one who knew them so well. I finally bought the 100-year-old maneki neko I've had my eye on for two years so if the big ceramic cat by the entrance is gone you know where it went. But now nobody knows exactly where it came from or who owns it. Neko-san's secrets are somewhere else now.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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6/22/2008
There is this really cute ceramic dispenser in the shape of a tomato, sitting on a little saucer.… Read more »
Antiques and handicrafts in Japantown. There is some great stuff in here BUT...
-1 for the cramped, maze-like layout
-1 for the grumpy old man behind the counter
This store is usually empty for a reason.
Tip: Never bring kids (or people that enjoy touching items) anywhere near this store. You will get barked at.
Seriously! What is with the grumpy old man!?!?!?!
Great stuff...but I go to Potrero for my Japanese antiques...like that great place next to cafe gratitude!
Antiques have always given me a Mcluhan-ian angst. To someone growing up in a mass-market world where commodities can be respawned seemingly ad infinitum, antiques have an irreproducability that, while fascinating in a museum context, would be singularly unnerving for a decoration in my own home. Plus, their status as prized trophies among that most materialistic of generations, the baby boomers, somehow makes the whole cult of the antique seem even more, well, antiquated to a digital generation that is switching from physical to virtual materials as if their lives depended on it (which, given the state of the environment today, they probably do).
Of course, with most western antiques this didn't matter too much because they weren't to my taste anyway. But the Asian decorations you can find at Mashiko are another matter entirely. They have a serene, minimalistic elegance that dovetails nicely with the less-is-more techno-aesthetic. And besides, it would be a shame if our generation's blossoming audio-visual sensibility comes at the complete expense of tactile awareness, which these hand-crafted artworks surely help preserve.
So it's a conundrum, to be sure. Or maybe it's just an elaborate rationalization for the simple fact that I can't afford anything in here. I guess we'll find out in 20 years.
miriam b. said it best. Decent collection of Japanese pottery from various pottery centers of Japan (not just Mashiko), but rather cramped space. Owner seems to have given up on the place ages ago, so he never seems to get in anything new or refreshing in stock.
my best friend works here a couple times a week. and they do have some cool stuff...at least when she picks them up and gets super excited about the piece she's looking at. in any case, i know where my boyfriend's japanese grandma is getting her christmas presents from me this year!
Love Mashiko style ceramics, but strange proprietor here that seems a bit burned out or out of it. Just a cold, old man. Too bad.
