Arita ware is a broad type of Japanese porcelain made in the area around the town of Arita, Japan that dates to the 17th century. The porcelains often feature elaborate designs that are central to the Japanese aesthetics. The Arita Cafe gives life to these historical yet daily wares by turning the beautiful patterns on the porcelain into animated images that are projected to the user’s surrounding. For example, when a piece of Arita ware that features a crane is put on the table, the table would change color as the sensor detects the placement of the ware, and then animated cranes would start to fly away from the porcelain. By utilizing digital technology, the classic beauty and traditional narratives of the Arita wares get to be re-interpreted in a larger physical space. This the Arita ware of the future: porcelains that carries aesthetic meanings that are no longer stagnant but rather animated, audible and interactive.
