SHOBIDO-HONTEN

Arita porcelain figure "momoco bear" expresses to the heart's content the "now" of Arita-yaki porcelain, a technique that has been handed down over 400 years, and the spirit of pursuit for beauty.

Ko-Imari porcelain with auspicious design

Arita porcelain figurines are produced using the exquisite expressive power of overglaze transfers of ancient auspicious designs. While maintaining the traditional color scheme, the design is arranged to harmonize with modern living spaces.

Gold Brocade Dot

After the base color is painted with overglaze enamel, the pattern is drawn with lacquer, and then gold leaf is applied on top of it and fired.

Wa-tsunagi (Connecting in a circle)

The work is full of playful touches such as gold stitches resembling a stuffed animal, a bear hidden in the pattern, and a "peach" on the tail, which is a reference to "momoco (momo means peach in Japanese)”.

Since its establishment in 1948, SHOBIDO HONTEN has been engaged in manufacturing products to pass on the traditional beauty and techniques of Arita-yaki to future generations under the motto of "timeless beauty". 

Rooted in the town of Arita, Saga Prefecture, where Arita-yaki is produced, they produce the "Kisen" brand of tableware and the "momoco" brand of porcelain figurines in partnership with many potters and artists.

In the 1970s, Shozabu Kamochi, the second generation owner of Shobido's main store, traveled around Europe, including East Germany, which did not have diplomatic relations at the time, and brought back over 100 pieces of Arita porcelain from the Edo and Meiji periods. Convinced that the traditional beauty of Arita-yaki could be loved beyond the boundaries of time and country, he developed the "Kisen" brand of tableware with the idea of "bringing the traditional beauty of Arita-yaki to modern life. Inheriting this vision, the figurine brand "momoco" was born to allow people with more varied lifestyles to enjoy the diverse techniques of Arita-yaki porcelain.

Arita-yaki porcelain, the first porcelain produced in Japan, is a Japanese craft with a history of more than 400 years. Arita Town, located in the western part of Saga Prefecture, Kyushu, is surrounded by mountains and rich in nature.

Arita became a major porcelain production center after the discovery of ceramic stone, the raw material for porcelain, in 1616.

Arita-yaki porcelain, with its pure white porcelain surface and diverse and rich decorative techniques such as underglaze blue, overglaze blue, and gold painting, was widely popular both in Japan and abroad as gifts for court nobles and shoguns, and as export items for European royalty and aristocrats.

The excellent design styles and traditional techniques established in the Edo period have been inherited and innovated repeatedly, and the Arita flame is still burning today.