Artisan | Woodturner: Takahashi Akinori | 高橋昭倫

About👤

Year of Birth: 1957 | Ob.

Location: Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture

Master: Takahashi Hashime

Apprentice:

Workshop:

Kokeshi Style: Sōsaku | 創作こけし

Born in Miyagi prefecture, Sendai City, Japan, he is the son of Takahashi, Hashime, and has won several awards and sponsored creative Kokeshi painting classes. He is an accomplished artist and has only created a few Kokeshi in honor of his father.

In many respects, Akinori follows the aesthetic of his father in both form and ornamentation. However, his production is limited, and several pieces he has produced focus on the Tanabata festival, which is a Japanese tradition wherein people write their wishes on tanzaku papers, (colorful, small strips of paper), and hang them on bamboo and tree branches as illustrated in on his Kokeshi. Akinori-san also produced several Zodiac motif Kokeshi and several with natural elements from the environment and wildlife. His wood preferences include dogwood, is cherry. Signatures vary from hand-signed, a hanko, in some cases both.

Awards🏅

2004 All Japan Kokeshi Competition; Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman's Award
2005 National Modern Kokeshi Exhibition; Honorable Mention Award
2006 National Modern Kokeshi; Encouragement Award
2008 National Modern Kokeshi; Encouragement Award
2017 National Modern Kokeshi; Encouragement Award

Other📑

Community gallery: Link

Soulportals gallery: Link

Known signatures: Link

🧑🏼‍🎨 Artistic Endeavors

In 1998, he held a creative kokeshi painting class at the Miyagi Festival in Arles, France.
In 2002, he held a creative kokeshi painting class at the Tanabata exchange event in Tainan, Taiwan.

Sources

Shibukawa City Board of Education, Lifelong Learning Division. (2008). *Creative Kokeshi Doll Exhibition in Shibukawa City: 15th anniversary commemorative catalogue, original Kokeshi and its artists*. Shibukawa City & Shibukawa City Board of Education.
Shibukawa City & Shibukawa City Board of Education. (2024). National Creative Kokeshi Art Exhibition in Shibukawa 30th anniversary commemorative magazine: Creative Kokeshi and its artists. Lifelong Learning Division, Shibukawa City Board of Education.
Wolf, R., & Evans, M. (2025). Artisan | Woodworker: Takahashi, Akinori | 1957-. Mingei Arts. https://mingeiarts.com/collections/artisan-woodworker-takahashi-akinori-1957
Admin. (2023, October 18). 高橋昭倫 / Takahashi Akinori | 創作こけしの杜 Wonderful life with Kokeshi. Kokeshi-Sousaku.com. https://kokeshi-sousaku.com/takahashi-akinori/

Artisan | Woodturner: Takahashi Akinori | 高橋 昭倫