They do such a wonderful job setting up the LAPADA fair in Berkeley Square every year – making it so beautiful and inviting!
There was one stand at the LAPADA fair that I just had to stop at because of its pure beauty of colours and design:
Japanese Gallery at the LAPADA fair
I had reached the Japanese Gallery; traders since 1977, who bring us a wide selection of genuine Japanese art and artefacts, and showcase items like ceramics, Katana (traditionally made Japanese sword) and Ukiyo-e, that we are looking closer at below.
Exquisite porcelain cups and saucers from Japanese Gallery
The Japanese word for describing porcelain and pottery is Yaki. The history of porcelain-making in Japan is quite a brutal one, as a Japanese army invaded Korea in 1598, in the very beginning of the Edo period (1603-1868). They kidnapped a few families that had learnt the art of pottery making from the Chinese, brought them back to Japan and set up their own porcelain production. The continental influences remained in the art, even after Japanese artisans took to porcelain making and applied their artistic license many years later.
The famous tea ceremony culture gained ground in the late 16th century in Japan, which increased the porcelain production further. Another increase in the demand of these exquisite pieces came with the baroque époque in Europe in the 17th century, when many people became wealthy and demanded oriental and unusual things. (1)
This is a just a small extract of this fascinating history, and you can dig deeper into Japanese history on the Japanese Gallery website.
Satsuma maple design plate 1868-1912 from the Japanese Gallery at the LAPADA fair
Japanese Gallery art at the LAPADA fair
Ukiyo-e means “pictures of the floating world” and the world referred to in the name was one free from worries and concerns of life. (1) and is a genre of woodblock prints and paintings that were popular in Japan from the 17th until the 19th century. The artists would often paint beautiful women, sumo wrestlers, historic, landscape and travel scenes, as well as flora and fauna (2).
Japanese Kimono and Obi, Japanese Gallery at the LAPADA fair
There was also a lovely lady dressed in a traditional kimono among all these beautiful treasures. I will be writing a blog post about vintage kimonos soon, so I was absolutely delighted to get a few photos of her!
66D Kensington Church Street
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Sources:
(1) Japanese Gallery
(2) Wikipedia
Decades of Elegance 