Traditional craft raden (mother-of-pearl inlay) elevated to the digital world. Contemporary artist Terumasa Ikeda's work to be exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum in the UK.

Ikeda Terumasa, a lacquer artist affiliated with Ginza Ippodo Gallery, has his work displayed as the main visual at "Urushi Now: Contemporary Japanese Lacquer" held at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London from Thursday, April 30, 2026.

This exhibition introduces diverse expressions of lacquerware in the 21st century through the material and techniques of lacquer, which has a history of over 7,000 years in Japan.

Ikeda is known for his innovative expressions that incorporate modern scientific technologies such as laser processing and ultrasonic vibration into "raden," a decorative technique that has existed since the Nara period, in which mother-of-pearl from abalone shells is affixed to lacquerware.

One of his most distinctive features is his design using numbers. It's new how he employs "numbers," a symbol universally understood, in raden, replacing traditional designs of flowers, birds, and the moon.

Furthermore, he has established a unique expression where "digital and nature" and "organic and inorganic" intersect, by cutting integrated circuits and pixels into tiny shell fragments and incorporating them.

The "Beauty of Numbers" Discovered by a Boy Fascinated by Religious Architecture

In high school, Ikeda participated in a World Heritage restoration project in Nepal, which led him to become captivated by the decorative beauty of religious architecture around the world, such as Bhaktapur, Angkor Wat, and Cologne Cathedral.

He said, "I was overwhelmed by decorations created by human hands long ago. I wondered if I could also create such 'transcendent beauty'."

The motif he chose, as a member of the digital generation, is "numbers," which can be called a symbol of the "information age."

His style involves cutting shells with a laser, polishing minuscule shell fragments while vibrating them with ultrasound, and then arranging them as "numbers" or "signal" patterns on lacquerware.

This is a valuable opportunity to see the current state of Japanese lacquer expression in London. If you are in the vicinity, please do stop by.

Exhibition Information