Today’s guest post is written by Jason Konopinski. 

Kintsugi (“gold joinery”) is a traditional Japanese restoration technique used in the repair of cracked and broken ceramicware.

First developed at some point in the 15th century, the technique uses a lacquer resin to reattach cracked and broken ceramic ware; the resulting veins are then coated with silver or gold powder.

The subtlety of the aesthetic philosophy focuses on the imperfections themselves rather than attempting to disguise them.

Often, we try to repair broken things in such a way as to conceal the repair and make it “good as new.”

Instead, by aggrandizing the damage and venerating the object complete with its flaws, kintsugi expresses the belief that part of what makes our legacy interesting and beautiful are the very things that so many of us try to sweep under the carpet or otherwise obscure from view. (more…)