Some time ago, I wrote in “Like Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution” (Japanese page) about my strong interest in products made with old machinery.
The Meiji period (1868–1912) was a time when Japan rapidly introduced and adapted modern industrial technology, and textile production underwent major changes.
However, what interests me is neither a simple hand tool nor a modern machine.
It is something that can no longer be described as a tool, yet remains too closely connected to human hands, judgement and physical movement to be called a fully developed machine.
At Hitotsuya（ひとつ屋）, we understand the Japanese word written as 器械 as something positioned between a hand tool and a machine.
A hand tool is used directly by a person. A machine, by contrast, uses power or automation to carry out part or much of the work that a person would otherwise perform.
Between them is the kind of equipment that Hitotsuya calls 器械, pronounced kikai. It is operated by human hands or feet and supports the maker’s strength, allowing work to be carried out more consistently and productively than with tools alone.
Yet the maker’s judgement, adjustments, senses and skills remain an essential part of the process.
In other words, this equipment does not remove people from making things. It works together with them.
The development of loom technology can be traced from human-operated looms to power looms, automatic looms and modern computer-controlled looms.
One of the forms of production that Hitotsuya hopes to pursue is based on this kind of human-operated equipment positioned between hand tools and machines.
I do not want to recreate an earlier age exactly. Nor do I want to collect old equipment simply to place it on display.
I want the maker to remain close to the material, watch the equipment move, think, make adjustments and continue working with their own hands.
At the same time, the equipment can provide a level of productivity and consistency that would be difficult to achieve through handwork alone.
This is the old yet new form of production that I hope to put into practice today.
At last, a few days before writing this article, I moved a collection of weaving tools and equipment from our workshop in Osaka to the old-house workshop in Iga, Mie Prefecture.
Each piece is an older object that I collected patiently over many years. Every one has a different structure and movement, and I already feel a strong attachment to them.
▼ Weaving tools and equipment moved from the Osaka workshop to the old-house workshop in Iga
For now, the tools and equipment have simply been brought into the building.
From here, I will inspect each piece, clean it, repair and adjust it where necessary, and consider both the order of work and the best arrangement within the workshop.
The aim is not to create a storage room for old machinery. I want this old house to become a place where my ideas are put into practice—a working space where the equipment is operated and used to make things.
Hitotsuya’s understanding of 器械 as equipment positioned between a hand tool and a machine is explained further in “Meiji-Era Equipment and AI in the Reiwa Era” (Japanese page).
The Reiwa period began in 2019 and is Japan’s current era, in which digital technology, automation and artificial intelligence increasingly shape work and daily life.
In future articles, I will introduce not only the things made here, but also the structure and purpose of each piece of equipment, together with the processes of repair, adjustment and test operation.
Please look forward to seeing how this workshop develops.