This is the story of Takesada Shoten and the inexplicable charm of bamboo. Japanese have long revered bamboo, enchanted by its beauty and delicacy, captivated by its flexibility, strength and versatility as a building material. Takesada Shoten was founded in Kyoto in 1877; bamboo artisans with a rich and enduring heritage. Over generations, they have cultivated their own traditions — honouring timeworn techniques while quietly refining and innovating. Master craftspeople, they create bamboo wallpanels and installations with precision & grace.
Kyoto’s bamboo forests
With an excellent climate for growing the highest quality bamboo combined with a huge respect for artisan skills Takesada Sotan has produced many famous bamboos known as the ‘Kyoto bamboos’. These include ‘white bamboo’, ‘drawing bamboo’, ‘sesame bamboo’ and ‘tortoiseshell bamboo’.
“A dedicated team of Kyoto artisans, continuously engaging in a lifelong dialogue
with bamboo”
Skilled bamboo artisans
With its unique flexibility, strength and delicacy, glossiness and smoothness, bamboo transforms into various fabulous products. Takesada Shoten partners with designers to advance bamboo’s possibilities, honing each idea through precise refinement and testing.
In the groves the bamboos are selected for their individual features, the spirit of each is honoured and they are observed and cared for from their first days as a small shoot
Bamboo panels, ceilings & screens made in Kyoto
Uniquely flexible yet very strong, fine and delicate and with a smooth lustre, bamboo makes for a compelling building product. Kyoto’s unique climate, cultural environment and skilled processing have produced numerous renowned bamboo products which are considered traditional Kyoto crafts. Thus Takesada Shoten’s bamboo artisans have created a wonderful and beautiful selection of designs.
On the ceiling is a thin ‘flat-split’ bamboo; beautifully balanced with a flat yet slightly curved surface. Takesada Shoten manufactures flat-split bamboo from exactly 2mm to 60mm, splitting the round bamboo and carefully shaving the side to uniform widths. In the far left corner is a panel in the impeccable ‘hammer-split’ design – a popular wall decor in Kyoto homes that we know that it will look excellent in Singapore spaces adding a refined luxurious texture.
Hospitality
Artisan bamboo is undoubtedly popular for restaurant interior design, whether for Japanese restaurants or cocktail bars, this is a romantic material that creates elegant textures.
Flat split
Bamboo can be processed in a variety of widths from 2mm-60mm, different colours and several different ways of splitting. This is a Hirawari panel, known as flat split, the profile is less round and traditionally used in Kyoto townhouses
Hammer split
An absolutely beautiful bamboo panel, known as Hishigi it is made using a specific tool. The cracks provide the charm and thus it is a popular decoration in Kyoto homes. Below you can see it being made.
Half Split
More curvaceous than the flat split panel the half split is more three dimensional. Here you can see dyed green bamboo (natural green bamboo fades), black bamboo with fading, and white bamboo. In this case the white bamboo is more refined with the sides shaved off. So many options.
Parallel Split
Bamboo in cross-section is revealed, a fascinating repetition. The outer-sides are retained whilst the front and back are shaved off, and depending upon the width and position of the bamboo nodes the look changes. When thick and robust the result is more three-dimensional whilst thin and delicate bamboo is planar.