Ceramics and Pottery Arts and Resources

 

Takiguchi Kazuo ceramic sculpture

 

The concept of aesthetics in Japan is seen as an integral part of daily life, especially since the dominant religion of Shinto is a celebration of the innate beauty of landscapes and emphasizes the wholeness of nature. Shin is related to kami which includes the ‘essence’ of the inanimate and animate, including rocks, rivers, trees, animals and people.

The inclusion of Tao and Zen Buddhist philosophies into Shinto contributed to an understanding of the subtle balance that permeates nature and its appreciation became fundamental to the aesthetic ideals of the ‘arts’ and other cultural elements. According to the Japanese philosopher Kitaro Nishida, the essence of Oriental wisdom is driven by fact that one craves for harmony in experience and also for unity. Much of what the West admires in Japanese art today can be traced to Zen influences on Japanese architecture, poetry, ceramics, painting, calligraphy, cuisine, gardening, the tea ceremony, flower arrangement, and other crafts.
This was expressed in the Japanese arts, for example in calligraphy, where the brush line became sweeping and fluid — spontaneous rather than predictable, irregular rather than regular. In landscape painting, emptiness became a crucial ingredient and space itself was brought to life with a few strokes of the brush. Japanese haiku ( poetry) embraced silence and simplicity to evoke mood and sensation while Ikebana flower arrangement achieved beauty with a solitary spray of blossoms and emphasis on space instead of a complex arrangement and combination of colours favored by Western floral artists.

 

Yukiko Asakura flower vessel

The aesthetic concept of Shibui originated around 1370 and was used to describe an appearance or experience of intrinsically fine quality, tempered with economy of form, line, and effort, that created a timeless tranquility. Shibui objects appear to be simple overall but they include subtle details, such as textural design that balances simplicity with complexity. This is one instance among many where Shibusa treads a fine line between contrasting aesthetic elements, such as elegant and rough, a distressed uneven finish with smooth or spontaneous and restrained. The polarities all allude to the presence of the Taoist/Zen middle path, with its inherent stillness, detachment and serenity. Quietude represents one of the elements of Shibui along with the dynamic of moving towards non-dualism and the resolution of opposites. Shibui, represents a recognition or ‘felt sense’ of evolving perfection that is reinforced by the presence of opposites. Japanese potters, musicians, painters, bonsai and other artists often aspire to integrate ‘Shibui-like’ qualities into their art.

 

Kintsukuroi bowl

Wabi Sabi also contains the aesthetic of evolution of perfection where imperfections are accepted for the potential dynamic of still having to attain completeness. Kintsukuroi, the use of gold to repair broken pottery, is a recognition of this feature. Weathered, aged pieces contain the dynamic of new turning old, that evokes wabi sabi, as do irregular shaped pieces, possessing the potency of attaining symmetry.
Another aesthetic concept is Ensō, which means “circle”. It symbolizes the Absolute, enlightenment, strength, the Universe, and the Void. Some Zen Buddhist calligraphists believe that the character of the artist is fully exposed in how she or he draws an ensō.. Some artists will practice drawing an ensō daily, as a kind of spiritual exercise.
Gazing upon a horizon after a boat has sailed from view is used to describe the subtle aesthetic principal of “yugen” where the visual is more hidden than overt. Circumstances and objects that provoke the imagination and the subtle can be connected to yugen. A deep awareness of an elegant and profound beauty is associated with yugen and what is distinctive about Zen aestheticism is its emphasis on enlightenment through contemplation of beauty in nature and art.
Simplicity, balance and refined elegance in Japanese art acts as a metaphor for the depth and beauty inherent in the natural surroundings. Even the Samurai recognized the disciplines and sense of balance exhibited in the arts and emulated some of their principals, which is why it is known as martial ‘arts’. Japanese art is deeply established in the traditions and lifestyle of Japan and the strength and structure of their culture will ensure it future longevity. Of all the artistic disciplines in Japan, the ceramics arts is probably the most elevated, having an important role in the presentation of their cuisines , ikebana floral displays, tea ceremony and interior decor.

 

 

Contemporary vase – Usui Kazunari

20″ tall

Sold by Modern Japanese Ceramics, Kyoto

 

 

Oribe Koro Incense Burner — Kato Kuniya

 

 

 

Kato Toyohisa purple shino vase

 

 

 

 

Ceramic bowl – Zogan decoration – Matumura Matumura

‘Zogan’ (damascening or inlaying) technique, is carving into the surface of the pottery, then inlaying clay of other colors into the carved-out areas to make a design. After inlaying the clay, a glaze is applied and then it’s ghost-fired.

 

 

 

Ryo Suzuki

 

 

 

Tokoname Tsubo Vase – Konishi Yohei

 

 

 

Contemporary vase – Hiraga Taeko A

Modern Japanese Ceramics

 

 

 

Slab molded bottle with clear celadon gosu underglaze – Kawai Kanjiro

Eocene Arts

 

 

Footed black and white bowl – Yuri Takemura

 

 

 

Mashiko Bottle Vase — Shimaoka Tatsuzo

 

 

 

Chawan Tea Bowl by Ono Hakuko

 

 

Faceted shino vase – Hayashi Shotaro – White Shino glaze clings like ice and thick snow to the crenellated precipices of this sculptural vase.

height 15 inches

Modern Japanese Ceramics Gallery

 

 

Shimizu Yasutaka

 

 

 

Tato Takuo vase

 

 

 

Vase with white tree zogan inlay design – Moriyoshi Saeki

The zogan (damascening or inlaying) technique, is where the surface of the pottery is carved, and then clay of other colors is inlaid into the carved-out areas to make a design. After inlaying the clay, a glaze is applied the it is ghost fired.

 

 

Contemporary Japanese vase – Atsuyuki Ueda

 

 

Hayato Sawada faceted vessel

Gallery Japan

 

 

Porcelain lidded vessel – Takashi Ikura

21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa

Photo: SAIKI Taku

 

 

 

Contemporary ceramic vessel – Ki Kakuseki

japanpotterynet.com

 

 

Morino Taimei

William Bayer Collection

 

 

 

Junko Kitamura

Ceramic Arts and Perception

 

 

 

Kaneta Masanao

 

 

 

Kakurezaki Ryuichi – Mimitsuki fresh water container

 

 

 

Kato Ichiro Exhibition — Kaki Tsuto gallery

www.kakiden.com

 

 

Kawamoto Taro sculptural vase

 

 

 

Ken Matsuzaki, Square vase, hidasuki technique.

Bizen stoneware, has the characteristic reddish hidasuki or “fire-marked” pattern. Bizen stoneware is produced from a unique clay that can only be mined from the Bizen area of Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The clay has an unusually high Fe content compared with the traditional porcelain clay and prior to firing, the Bizen works are wrapped in rice straw that was used originally as a separator to prevent adhesion. The hidasuki pattern only appears where the rice straw has been in direct contact with the clay and potassium from the straw is thought to be the catalyst.

 

 

 

Ken Mihara

 

 

Shimaoka Tatsuzo jomon platter

 

 

 

Marbled jar – hydrangea design – Matsui Kosei

 

 

 

Large Mashiko vase – Shimaoka Tatsuzo

 

 

 

Large white Shino Tsubo by Hayashi Shotaro

 

 

 

Bizen vase with fire marks and kiln mutation effect – Kazuya Hashimoto

Gallery Japan

 

 

Large turquoise and gold sculptural vessel by Morino Taimei

 

 

 

Mitsui Kosei

 

 

 

Mentori Shigaraki Vase by Koyama Yasuhisa

 

 

Yamazaki Akira

 

 

 

Faceted bowl with Iroe decoration in engraving  overglaze enamel  gold and silver. Hokuto Ito

‘Iroe’
Iroe (literally color painting in Japanese) is a technique in which a transparent glaze is applied and the piece glost-fired, then paint is applied over the glaze and the piece is fired again at a low temperature of approximately 800 degrees Celsius. It is also called uwae, or over-painting. The paint used in traditional iroe is known as wa-enogu (Japanese-style paint), and color choices include red, blue, yellow, green and purple. It is also possible to use yo-enogu (Western-style paint).

 

 

Ando Hidetake ovoid vase

 

 

 

‘Dragon Cloud’ – Two piece kutani stoneware sculpture – Nakamura Takuo

 

 

 

Jar of irregular shape with colored slip decoration – Ryuji Miyahara

Gallery Japan

 

 

Akira Satake – ceramic cup

 

 

Bird decoration vase –  Kazu Yoneda

 

 

Nakamura Takuo

 

 

 

Nakashima Ichiyo

 

 

Okumura Hiromi – sculptural ceramic form

 

 

 

‘1307’ indigo bowl—Kiyokazu Kato

Gallery Japan

 

 

Porcelain Tenmoku Jar  — Taku Nonaka

 

 

Elegant blue shino vase -Hiroshi Sakai

 

 

Huge pottery vessel, mottled surface – Shimizu Uich

 

 

 

Shimizu Yasutaka tsubo

 

 

Tsumiage Kaki (Flower Vase) – Yamamoto Izuru

 

 

 

Miyake Yoji

 

 

 

Kazuhide Uchida

 

 

 

Sadeiji tsubo – Hiroshi Kikuchi

japanpotterynet.com

 

 

 

‘Flowing shadow’ – Yoshie Kitahama

 

 

Vintage vessel – Takiguchi Kazen

 

 

 

 

Wood fired vase – Tani Seiuemon

Sold Modern Japanese Ceramics

 

 

 

Oribe Plate – Shigemasa Higashida

 

 

 

Shigaraki Vase by Ueda Mitsuharu

 

 

 

Takiguchi Kazuo

 

 

 

Tomoo Hamada

 

 

 

Gomi Kenji

 

 

Kato Takahiko

Santa Rosa Gallery

 

 

Yasuhisa Kohyama

 

 

Yasuhisa Kohyama

Japan Art Galerie

 

 

Kawabata Fumio

 

 

Matsui Kosei – Stoneware with layers of colored clay

Alain A Truong

 

 

Yoshitaka Hasu

Touching Stone Gallery

 

 

 

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