Miyagawa Kosai is a name that is synonymous with Kyo-yaki to many people. There’s no name that’s shaped the art more according to some scholars. Rather than debate whether or not this is true, it’s better to look at the facts and allow individual people to appreciate art within its appropriate historical context.
The oldest […]
It may help readers to better understand the story of Snow Country by Kawabata Yasunari. The novel tells the tale of a love interest that occurs at a remote hot springs onsen in Yuzawa, though the author doesn’t actually ever give the town a name in the book itself. Men traveling to the town […]
Calligraphy is an art form that’s somewhere between writing and painting, which makes it all the more lovely. It combines aspects of the expressive power that comes with words as well as the extreme impact that’s made by a piece of visual art. Shofu Yoshimoto-sensei’s art is both feminine and bold.
It’s delicate and yet […]
Tamba in Hyogo has become a major event over the years. The pottery has also developed multiple names as well. Tachikui was the original place of origin for the style, so sometimes one might still see it referred to as tachikui yakimono. Those origins are quite interesting in their own right.
The origins stretch back […]
Tamba in Hyogo Prefecture is perhaps one of the best-known modern cities where traditional yakimono arts continue to be a major way of life. This is perhaps ironic, however, as the town itself is still rather small. Back in 2004 the modern structure of Tamba was realigned.
Sannan, Kaibara, Kasuga, Hikami, Aogaki and Ichijima made […]
Frequent readers of this column might very well be wishing they could learn a little more about what goes into urushi work considering the recent emphasis on the combination of urushi and yakimono in various pieces. Urushi lacquer work has been used since the Jomon period, and some people might also be familiar with […]
Those who appreciate permanent displays should have a look at the Works of Living National Treasures and Great Masters exhibit at the Crafts Gallery at the National Museum of Modern Art. The exhibit itself is small, but it’s not going away any time soon. It’s part of a program that presents the work of […]
Ikebana International has 165 chapters of their wonderful organization in sixty different countries around the world. They’ve been in existence since 1956, and were initially founded in Japan. Their branch in New York holds a full exhibition once a year in the metropolitan area. Amazingly it opened only one year after the original branch […]
The Sculpture Objects Functional Art + Design or SOFA gallery is presented by the Masterworks of Contemporary and Modern Art and Design. SOFA Chicago will be celebrating 20 years in October. The Chicago art exhibition will run from October 31 until November 3, 2013 out on Navy Pier. The organization always attracts a good […]
Most people with an interest in collecting Japanese ceramics have come across chawan tea bowls. For that matter, anyone with a passing interest in traditional Japanese life has probably come into contact with these humble but useful pieces of yakimono history. They’re really quite ubiquitous.
A chawan is a bowl that’s used for the preparation […]
