Asemi Co is a Japanese brand that was created by Yuki & Lars, designers and longtime friends. Always fascinated by traditional craftsmanship, they came together in 2015 to launch Asemi Co. Their mission is to preserve traditional local Japanese craftsmanship by combining various handicrafts with contemporary design. The resulting products thus offer a fusion of contemporary design and know-how.
They selected many craftsmen from all over Japan to give the Asemi cup a local identity in each Japanese region.
Asemi Co. mugs come in two sizes. They may look different at first glance, but they all have the same basic design, which allows them to be combined and stacked no matter what style of pottery they were made with.
Bizen-Yaki cups are a perfect and unique combination of timeless design and the oldest form of Japanese pottery.
These cups are limited to a maximum of 100 cups every 6 months. Each mug gets a seasonal stamp and batch number on the packaging.
For these cups, artisans in the Bizen region collect the raw material from different hills and rice fields in the Okayama region. Once the soil is crushed and the clay prepared, the water is filtered. Over several months, Kiko Ando, shapes the clay by hand on the lathe. Every mug is made this way.
The next step is to place the mugs in the oven. The straw serves as a spacer between the objects. The straw also leaves the signature Bizen-Yaki pattern when it burns.
Wood preparation is very essential. The amount of wood needed for cooking depends on the outside temperature. This step is also done by hand. It takes a lot of wood to light the oven for a week in a row.
The temperature inside the oven must exceed 1000°C.
For a week, Kiko Ando adds firewood every 5 to 10 minutes. After baking, the oven must cool down, which takes almost a week. When it has cooled sufficiently, the craftsman takes out the pieces carefully, one by one.
MATERIALS : Sandstone
TECHNIQUE : Turning, then cooking over a wood fire
ENAMEL : Wood ash enamel
COLOUR : Brown-Grey
DIMENSIONS : Ø 7cm, height approximately 10cm
USES AND MAINTENANCE:
Microwave: No
Dishwasher: No, prefer a hand wash
Oven: No
Food: Yes.
NOTE: Like any handcrafted product, these pieces may have slight variations in shape, color and thickness, especially for cooking over a wood fire like this mug.
