KIRIKANE is a line of accessories crafted from fine, carefully selected woods and adorned with kirikane—the traditional gold-leaf decorative technique from which the name itself is derived.

Kirikane involves layering and heat-bonding four sheets of gold leaf to give them thickness, then cutting the gold into delicate lines and shapes using a bamboo blade. These fragments are meticulously assembled to form intricate patterns. Historically, this technique has been used primarily to decorate Buddhist statues and paintings, playing an essential role in expressing their solemn yet graceful spiritual world.

However, due to its extreme delicacy, kirikane has traditionally lacked durability after application, making it unsuitable for objects intended to be touched or used in daily life. To overcome this limitation, we developed a unique technique that replaces the traditional adhesives—animal glue (nikawa) and seaweed-based glue (funori)—with lacquer (urushi), known for its exceptional strength and longevity.

KIRIKANE thus becomes a truly one-of-a-kind accessory, allowing the wearer to carry the refined and luminous beauty of Buddhist gold-leaf decoration into everyday life.

The creator, Momoe Kozuka, is an artisan at Kozuka Studio, where she works on the restoration of temples, shrines, and cultural properties, as well as the polychrome finishing of wooden Buddhist sculptures. Her encounter with kirikane began with a single book. From there, she traveled to study ancient Buddhist statues, repeatedly practicing and learning the technique through self-directed study.

Rather than limiting kirikane to something viewed only in sacred spaces, she sought a way to bring this beauty closer to everyday life as functional craft. This led her to research methods for improving the durability of the technique. She chose lacquer as the adhesive for gold leaf because of its long-standing use in crafts and Buddhist sculpture, and its proven reliability through centuries of aging.

Each piece is created with the same mindset she brings to the restoration of Buddhist statues—not only to achieve beauty at the moment of completion, but to ensure that it may be cherished and passed down from person to person over time.

The kirikane technique was introduced to Japan approximately 1,400 years ago during the Asuka period (7th century), alongside the arrival of Buddhist art. It gradually took root in Japan, reaching its peak between the Heian and Kamakura periods (8th–14th centuries). By the Edo period (17th century), however, a simpler method known as kindei—painting patterns with gold powder mixed into pigment—became prevalent, and the number of artisans practicing kirikane steadily declined.

Even today, kirikane artisans remain few, making it one of Japan’s traditional techniques that is particularly difficult to pass on. Most commonly applied to the patterned robes of Buddhist statues, kirikane designs are composed entirely of finely cut gold leaf. Even a single line as thin as a strand of hair reflects light with remarkable intensity.

For this reason, centuries after their creation, kirikane patterns on Buddhist statues and paintings continue to shine brilliantly—still visible today in temples and museums as enduring expressions of devotion and craftsmanship.