Kuretake (art products)
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Stationery |
| Founded | 1902 |
| Founder | Narakichi Watatani |
| Headquarters | Nara, Japan |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Masanori Watatani, President [1] |
| Products | Markers |
Number of employees | 252 [2] |
| Website | www.kuretake.co.jp |
Kuretake is a Japanese company that manufactures stationery products. The firm began its activities manufacturing sumi ink and brushes and then expanded its range of products, producing mainly pens.[3]
History
Founded under the name of Kuretake Sumi in 1902, the company began to produce the "sumi", a brush similar in style to certain watercolor brushes,[3] also with a generally thick wooden or bamboo handle and a broad soft hair brush that when wetted should form a fine tip. Oriental brushes were created for the traditional painting techniques of Japan and the Far East, such as sumi painting. Both the techniques themselves and the brushes have become popular in western countries.[4]
Bamboo and sumi brushes have become popular with watercolor artists for detailing and fine lines, while the hake brush is used much like a square wash.[4]
In 1965 Kuretake Industries Co., Ltd. was established as a plant specializing in the production of writing instruments while Tokyo office was established.[3]
In 1986 a subsidiary, "Kuretake U.K. Ltd." was established in the West Midlands, England.[3]
In 2014 a subsidiary, "Kuretake ZIG Corporation" was established in Sacramento, United States.
Products
Kuretake (and its subsidiary brand, Zig) manufactures a wide variety of markers, such as marker pens, highlighters and watercolor markers.
The firm also gained reputation for its "brush pen",[5] actually a marker pen with a brush-shapered flexible tip but refillable, using replaceable ink cartridges like fountain pens do. The brush pen by Kuretake was the first using cartridges (Pentel has recently launched a brush model that uses cartridges also).[6]
Brush pens (designed and recommended for calligraphy) have also gained popularity among comic book artists, who choose them to ink their works instead of dip pens or traditional brushes.
Through its brand ScrapBooking, Kuretake produces other stationery items such as papers, templates, corner punches, color selectors, and photo tapes.[7][8]