Every piece of Japanese folk craft that comes into Montgomery's possession seems destined for a new lease on life. Here on the shore of Lake Lugano items that are no longer used in everyday life in Japan, or that might even be at risk of being thrown away, find new purpose and bring new charm.
The lamps in the photograph on the right, for example, are made from 19th-century tea kettles decorated with lacquer designs of animals and fish. Such kettles are now rarely used in Japan outside the tea ceremony, but Montgomery has found a place for them at either end of his sofa.