Kozai Designs – a distinctive contemporary furniture and lighting gallery – opens in “The Rise,” the heart of Vancouver’s South Granville.

Furniture World Magazine

Owned by Vancouver’s Ron Cromie, Kozai features furniture hand-built in Japan by internationally acclaimed craftspeople who work with the finest natural materials available and to exacting standards of quality. Kozai celebrates the character and personality of solid hardwood and natural materials by featuring contemporary furniture and lighting products of quintessential design and quality. Its unique products are for post-modern homes, workspaces, hotels, restaurants and spas where different styles and types of furnishings are freely combined. “We display each piece as a separate object with the confidence that our customers will find their unique way to bring these pieces – tables and chairs and ambient lights – into their distinctive lives and lifestyles,” explains Cromie. ”Through intense interest in design, superb craftsmanship, dedication to quality and a reverence for the materials they work with, the people and companies we are proud to introduce to North America consistently produce furniture and lighting products of the highest standard,” says Cromie. Kozai also exclusively debuts the following collections within North America: Eriko Horiki Light Object Collection This outstanding artisan combines traditional Japanese paper-making (washi) arts with contemporary architectural structures in unique and unexpected ways. Outside of Japan, she is best known for creating the stage backdrop for renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road concerts. Known for the large three-dimensional shapes she creates, Horiki applies the same techniques to create her line of ambient light objects – floor, table and pendant lights with an extraordinary presence. Her Kyoto studio pioneered the production of very large sheets of handmade washi (sizes of 2700 x 2100 mm and greater.) The arrangement of the fibres in these sheets gives them remarkable internal strength despite their large size. As a result, Horiki constructs large three-dimensional shapes without any internal frames or supports. Horiki is the recipient of numerous awards in Japan. Her work can be found in public buildings, cultural institutes, hotels and exclusive restaurants throughout the country. Bunacored Lighting Collection Kozai’s Bunacored lighting collection reflects an unusual collaboration between a traditional lacquerware manufacturer, a well-known Japanese architect and a Tokyo gallery owner. Designed by architect Yukiharu Takematsu, designer of the Spiral Hall cultural venue in Tokyo’s Aoyama fashion district, these lights use the ultra-thin beechwood “tape” which serves as the underlying base in Japanese lacquer ware. When coiled into circular structures, the tape’s pure colour and translucent qualities provide a gentle, ambient glow. The collection is manufactured by Bunaco Lacquer Ware Manufacturing, an Aomori-based maker of traditional Japanese lacquer ware products. The entire project was coordinated by Tokyo gallery owner Takaaki Kosaka. The collection includes floor, table, sconce and ceiling lights. Unique Qualities of Kozai Designs Every piece of furniture featured at Kozai is hand-built from solid hardwoods in traditional woodworking centres located in northern and central Japan. These workshops typically use choice temperate hardwoods such as walnut, black cherry, hard maple, and oak from either Japan or North America. These craftsmen strive to bring out the unusual grain and any other markings in the wood to give each piece its distinct character and personality. There are numerous other features of Kozai furniture that set it apart. All of the tabletops are prepared from broad planks of two-inch thickness, a dimension seldom seen in North American woodworking. On many of the tables, the outer edges are a natural, free-form edge rather than being squared, neat and uniform, as in Western furniture production. Creation and Delivery In most cases, Kozai furniture is custom built, with a broad range of sizes and a variety of woods to choose from. Delivery time is normally 12 to 16 weeks. There are also pieces available for immediate purchase from the gallery, such as Kozai’s free-form tabletops. These tabletops use a single, natural-edge plank of wood, often with a pronounced flare or an open-split end. With such free-form pieces and with the longer planks, butterfly keys are sometimes used to preserve the integrity of the plank and to prevent end separation. Special Exhibits In addition to furniture and lighting, the Kozai gallery exhibits the work of artists working in other media or product areas. Its first special exhibit – now through December – features the striking ceramics of Ito Hidehito, one of Japan’s new-generation ceramic artists. Ito’s work is characterized by a freshness and delicacy not always associated with Japanese ceramics. He typically prefers organic leaf or shell-like forms, and uses very light, almost translucent glazes, sometimes with just a blush of turquoise or pink. Some of his work is further embellished with fine blue lines, or with the traditional fukizumi pattern of diffused blue dots. Kozai is located at 1515 West 6th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Call 604 484 8980 or visit kozaidesigns.com.