Bowl

Over 500 years ago in Japan, a repair technique was developed that celebrated the beauty of imperfection. Called kintsugi, which translates as “golden joinery,” this technique uses a mixture of lacquer and gold, silver, or platinum to mend an object in a way that highlights (rather than hides) the damage. More than merely a craft technique, kintsugi is a tangible display of the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi, a belief in the beauty of imperfection. This Japanese tradition has been applied to ceramics in other parts of East Asia including this stoneware vessel from China.