Diagonally across from Glass-Lab is a building reformed from an old apartment complex. It is now occupied by cafes and speciality stores. In this building you will see a sign that says “Rika shitsu”.
Slowly entering the shop, on the left side you will see black and white photos of a glass factory.
In the area as the number of old shops has shrunk so have the number of craftsmen. Riksshitsu was opened with the idea to create opportunities to train more new craftsman.
A beaker, flask, test tube, petri dish. Seeing these you will surely remember your school science class days with a sense of nostalgia. Was the poster of the periodic table this beautiful?
“It is a really unique store,” says Rika Sekiya, the kind looking owner. Over her years at the Sekiya-Rika company and at university research institutes, she gained a deep appreciation for scientific glass. With her store she wants to integrate scientific glass with interior design themes. While achieving this she wants to pass down craftsman technology to the next generation.
At first she participated in exhibitions to market scientific glass for uses close to the original purpose of the product, such as using beakers to measure liquids. But what really got people’s attention was the laboratory glassware used for completely different purposes than the original use. So she decided to test sales of her unconventional product in the Kiyosumi-Shirokawa neighborhood.
Recently in the neighborhood you can come across a coffee shops using scientific-like drip stands, or wine bars that use beakers as wine glasses. Slowly but surely the dream imagined when the store opened is becoming reality.
Rikashitsu fits in well amongst the neighbors who like handmade goods and have a good aesthetic sense. The store creates new opportunities to unconventionally utilize scientific glass.
If you have a chance while you are here take part in a workshop. Your own original product ideas may help Rika and her craftsman to expand their own thinking.