Antiques, Reflection, and Renewed Values – Hints for Selecting Objects from “Honda,” an Antique Dealer

Many people may think of rare works of art or expensive old tools when they hear the word “antique”. However, the essence of antiques goes beyond mere antiquity and rarity. The real appeal of antiques is their inexpressible beauty, which can only be judged by one’s own eyes.
　
In this article, we visited Honda, an antique dealer with a store in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture, in search of hints for sustainable living. What we learned through our interview with the owner, Mr. Keiichiro Honda, is a way of thinking that enriches our lives that goes beyond the simplistic notion that “choosing old things equals sustainable”.

Antique dealer “Honda” in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture

Keiichiro Honda and his wife Megumi run the antique shop “Honda” on the first floor of the Brewery Hall in Gifu City, Gifu Prefecture. Stepping into the store, one is confronted with a space where the word “tranquility” fits well. The interior of the modestly lit store changes its appearance as the light streaming in through the windows changes. While gazing at the lined up items changing their expressions in accordance with the light, Mr. Honda said something about antiques: “Each antique has its own value. The value of antiques depends on each person, In my opinion, it is very vague.”

The dictionary describes antiques as “old tools and antiques of rare or artistic value,” but for Mr. Honda, it is not essential to talk about their value in terms of mere market price or rarity.
　
“There is nothing wrong with the conventional value system,” he said. “But I don’t think that is the only way to make a choice. Then, what is the criterion for selection– if there is certainty in it or not.”

The ability to read “certainty“

Whether or not there is certainty in it. Mr. Honda describes it as “a reliable craft”. Certainty here, of course, does not simply mean technical perfection.
　
“What is important in what I call ‘reliable craftsmanship’ is its spirituality. The way it has been used or repaired is also important, but when I observe these things, I feel as if the thoughts and feelings of the user reside in the object. It is this invisible story that is unconsciously engraved in the objects that gives them their certainty,” he says.
　
Mr. Honda continues, “The ability to read these stories is what makes antiques so appealing”.
　
“I believe that the ability to read such stories is inherent in human beings. Different people may have different interpretations, but the difference in sensibilities is also interesting”.
　
The “certainty” of an invisible story is not something that can be easily explained in words. That is why, although it is ambiguous, attempting to read it, without being misled by its scarcity value, may lead to the enhancement of one’s own inner nature.

Believe in your own “eyes"

It is a time to pick up an object and think about its background. Mr. Honda says that this is also a time to reflect on oneself.
　
“I believe that the process of checking the appeal of something that interests you is synonymous with looking inside yourself. Through repetition of this process, I believe that one’s inner self will gradually become more refined.”
　
In this age of instant access to and consumption of information via smartphones, it is seemingly inefficient to find the appeal of things through one’s own inner self. However, it is precisely because we live in such an era that we need to reexamine this process.
　
“I think I, too, have been doing this kind of inefficient work for a long time,” he says, with smiling.

In today’s consuming society, the value of things tends to be influenced by superficial information. Even if you know this, it is very difficult to maintain your own eyes and sense of self in a world surrounded by preconceived values. Sometimes we don’t even realize that we are being influenced.
　
But that is why it is important to take time to look inside yourself. In other words, it may be a process of trusting one’s own “eyes”.
　
“The gaze varies, and the way we see things changes depending on the angle of our gaze. Sometimes you can see things that you cannot see. The ability to make impromptu judgments with one’s own gaze and the ability to pick and choose may be an indispensable ability in this world”.

“In a dark corner of a large indoor venue at a vendor’s market, the embroidered painting seemed to glow. There was a mysterious beauty, and not only because gold and silver threads were actually used. I believe that the spirituality of the creators and users in the past was reflected in their work as a certainty”.
　
At the time, Mr. Honda was not particularly interested in medieval Christian art and crafts. However, he says he was intuitively moved by the encounter.
　
“It was an inevitable encounter,” he recalls. The embroidered picture that he brought back to Japan with his pure “gaze” became the catalyst for his work and life thereafter.

Antiques challenge the way of life in the future

In this age when mass production has become the norm and trends set the standard for consumption, antiques ask us questions.
　
What is it that you yourself find truly beautiful?
Are you able to select its value with your own “gaze” not the others?
　
Until I visited “Honda,” I had a simple picture of choosing antiques as being sustainable. However, it seems that I was naive. It is not just eco-consciousness, but a time to face oneself and reevaluate one’s values through objects. This introspection is the foundation of sustainable living.
　
“It’s okay if you don’t use it,” said Mr. Honda. This is the antithesis of consumer supremacy, and yet it resonates comfortably in our modern ears.
　
“There are things that enhance you just by being in your possession, I hope my tableware can be like that” he said.
　
True sustainable living is not just a matter of reviewing the way we choose things, but also of continually renewing our sense of values through the things we use.

We pick up an antique and somehow we think it’s nice. We are not afraid of ambiguity that cannot be verbalized. The fact that it cannot be verbalized is, in the first place, the right answer. We each receive the spirituality that resides in things as we live in the present. We can call it sensitivity, but we can feel something more than that, something like a certainty, a kind of confidence in ourselves.
　
“Why do I think this thing in my hand is beautiful?”

The moment this question arises, antiques begin to enrich our lives, even if we do not use them.