「イスワークス」は札幌の木工家、高橋三太郎さんがデザインし、津別町の山上木工が製作する椅子ブランド。15年やってきて上質な椅子のシリーズが多くある。三太郎さんとは20年ほど前に住宅雑誌の取材でおじゃましてからのおつきあいだけれど、久しぶりにお会いすることになってイスワークスの話を聞いてみると、これがなかなかおもしろい。登場人物は、山上会長とその息子である裕一朗社長、そして三太郎さん。個性的でこだわりの強い3人の意見のぶつかり合いと和解の繰り返しは、テレビ番組のプロフェッショナルのよう。これを読み物にしたら、きっとファンが増えると思って冊子を作ることに。3人揃った写真を撮りたいとお願いしたら三太郎さんの工房に集まってくれたんだけど、頑固な3人も根っこではリスペクトし合ってるんだなって良くわかったよ。とにかくいい椅子を作りたくてしょうがない最高のチームなんだね。
"Isuworks" is a chair brand designed by Sapporo woodworker Santaro Takahashi and manufactured by Yamagami Woodworking in Tsubetsu Town. They have been in business for 15 years and have created many high-quality chair series. I have known Santaro since I visited him for an interview for a housing magazine about 20 years ago, but when I met him again after a long time and heard about Isuworks, it was quite interesting. The people involved are Chairman Yamagami, his son and president Yuichiro, and Santaro. The clashes and reconciliations between these three individualistic and strong-willed people were like something out of a TV show called "Professional." I thought that if I wrote about this, they would surely gain more fans, so I decided to make a booklet. When I asked if I could take a photo of all three of them together, they gathered at Santaro's workshop, and I could see that even though these three stubborn people are strong-willed, they respect each other at their core. They are simply a fantastic team who are just crazy about making good chairs.