The second edition of Salon Revelations (the Revelations Fine Craft and Creation Fair), held in the Grand Palais, Paris, attracted more attendees than the inaugural event, with a total of 38,566 attendees, of which 33% were professionals and buyers. The 340 creators who exhibited at Revelations included 70 international creators from 17 countries worldwide, who had been selected to showcase their work.
Haruhiko Kaneko, founder of Ishigaki-yaki Pottery, was honoured to receive a number of distinguished guests during the fair, including Prime Minister of France Manual Valls and Yoichi Suzuki, the Ambassador of Japan to France. Haruhiko was also delighted to have his work introduced in leading French newspaper Le Monde.
One French visitor noted how, in France, blue is considered to be the colour of hope. Hope, however fragile, is always needed in this world. She told Haruhiko, as an artist, he should consider it his mission to transmit hope throughout the world through the medium of his art. She looked happy as she spoke, with a blue Ishigaki-yaki pendant dangling around her neck.
Another French visitor noted that blue as the colour of royalty and described Ishigaki-yaki serving ware as “fit for a king”. That visitor promised to use his precious Ishigaki-yaki pieces the next time he was welcoming important visitors.
By the end of the fair, Haruhiko was convinced of his duty to continue to craft his “Ishigaki blue”, as a means of bringing joy and warm smiles to people around the world. Haruhiko is now more determined than ever to deliver to people around the world the happiness of Ishigaki blue.