Lacquerware maker Takaho Shoji hunches over his desk in the disaster-hit city of Wajima in central Japan, applying another layer of coating to a dark, wooden box.
One brushstroke at a time, the 53-year-old is determined to bring life back to his remote community after a devastating New Year's Day earthquake, followed by severe floods.
"I need to do whatever I can to move forward with the reconstruction, and to continue this tradition and pass it on to the next generations," said the soft-spoken father of two.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.