Akitsu Orii

À In Marseille, Japanese ceramicist Akitsu Orii introduces visitors to kintsugi, the art of repairing broken ceramics by embellishing their flaws with precious metals. Tucked away on a quiet street in the heart of Marseille, on the ground floor of a Haussmannian building, lies Akitsu Orii's workshop. In this silent, almost meditative space, she guides her visitors through the art of kintsugi. Born in 1978 in Nara, near Kyoto and Osaka, Orii, whose first name means "red dragonfly," an ancient poetic synonym for Japan, long followed a different path. A baroque musician and flautist, she lived in Paris for 19 years before settling in Marseille in 2019 with her husband, who is fascinated by Japanese culture and teaches the tea ceremony. The birth of her daughter marked a turning point: she bought a potter's wheel and began teaching herself ceramics. Today, she is the only Japanese woman offering kintsugi workshops in Marseille. Dating from the 15th century^e Dating back to the 19th century, this art form involves repairing cracks with natural lacquer and powders of gold, silver, tin, or copper. Heir to wabi-sabi, an aesthetic philosophy that celebrates the beauty of imperfection, kintsugi reveals scars instead of hiding them. "Kintsugi represents the repair of life's accidents," explains Akitsu Orii. In her tranquil studio, four sessions are required to complete the ten restoration steps. "Kintsugi is perceived as meditation. It's therapy in action." Some psychologists even come to experience this practice, alone or with their patients. The musician has never truly abandoned her first art: "Kintsugi is a continuation of music." Here, there is no recorded music, only a few words and sometimes the birdsong from the neighboring garden. "People often find my studio very soothing." In contrast to overconsumption, kintsugi transforms our relationship with objects. A repaired part remains fragile, and now deserves our full attention.