Sara
Neighborhood: West 60s
Type of Place: Gift Shops
Description:
"When an artist makes an object, it's almost complete—but not yet. When people use it and appreciate it, then it's complete," says Naoki Uemura, the proprietor of Sara, a lovely and welcoming Upper East Side shop that has occupied this spot for 15 years, specializing in Japanese pottery, glassware, and tableware. Accordingly, engaging his store's visitors in the life of an artwork—and the life of an artist—is a process he values: "I like to tell the story behind an object that has caught someone's attention."
Quite a few gorgeous items caught our attention here: a blue and white glazed dish set from the prominent Hakusan studio in the town of Arita, which is known for its porcelain ($110 for 5 dishes —5 being, Uemura explains, a traditional number for such sets in Japan); a charming teapot featuring blue celadon on white glaze—if a piece of April sky fell to earth in the form of a teapot, it would look like this—also from Hakusan ($75); a white bud vase with a purple interior glaze by potter Kane Yunome ($60); hand-blown glass containers in bright colors from the Mizuyaki Studio in Tokyo ($68 and, Uemura informs us, one of the shop's more popular gift items during this past holiday season). Chopsticks range from $18–$120; the priciest is a pair carved from ebony that looks at first like the soul of simplicity but, under closer examination, reflects astonishing craftsmanship.
Something of a Renaissance man, Uemura has a background in pottery, iron and woodwork, painting, and music (he played bass guitar and sang in a band in his earlier years in Japan). Likewise, his shop defies limitations: Uemura makes a point of promoting artists who work outside the realm of the store's focus (currently the art of sculptor James Garvey is on display), occasionally brings customers to meet artists in their studios, and is working with the Asia Society to organize a series of artist panel discussions this spring. His wife and business partner, Kumi Oniki, handles the finances—"She pays my salary," Uemura says with a laugh; and Sara is staffed with appropriately knowledgeable and label-resistant personnel—including assistant Tom Nieremberg, the child of a Japanese mother and an American dad, who studies art at Hunter College, one block away. We were drawn into Sara by the pottery in the window; but the sense of connectedness , enthusiasm, and community here have us looking forward to being a regular. - Pamela Grossman; 01,2005
Sara
952 Lexington
(north of 68th St.)
New York, NY
212-772-3243
Map
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