Living with Japanese Pottery

There is no other country in the world with the tremendous variety of arts and crafts then Japan; that a big statement to make, yet it’s true. Region to region one will find unique cultural creations, often dating back centuries, that are all dependent on local materials. That rings truer for Japanese pottery then all other crafts. The clay from Shigaraki is completely different then the clay from Mashiko or Bizen or Hagi or Karatsu, etc. And that is one key element for what makes Japanese pottery so special and cherished/collected the world over.

For me, I started out as a collector, then a writer and then opened a yakimono gallery, yakimono is something that’s fired, in the late 1990s. I am grateful to my father for supporting me in opening this gallery. Living with and using daily Japanese pottery has not only nourished my body yet also has delighted my senses and spirit to such a plane where these daily activities enter into a world of divinity and beauty.

A Meeting with a Potter

I started my column for the Japan Times in the 1990s because there was very little information in English about what was happening then, what artists were making waves, where and when were their exhibitions, etc. Of course there was a bit of English information in those days, yet the majority only focused on the Mingei movement and those that were famous in it, such as Hamada Shoji and Shimaoka Tatsuzo, both Living National Treasures and grand ambassadors for Japanese pottery worldwide.

Since I had met ceramic artists from across Japan and knew about them and their upcoming exhibitions I thought if no one else is going to tell their stories then I think I will! It turns out the column『Ceramic Scene』 became influential as it educated not only collectors yet also museum curators and gallerists overseas and for that I am very honored and grateful. At that time very few overseas museums had any contemporary Japanese pottery, if they did have any Japanese art it was mostly Edo and Meiji period export wares. That has all changed. Now regional museums across the United States and parts of Europe and Australia have permanent works in their collections and often have exhibitions, And the MET in NYC has works always on display and one they acquired from my gallery

A most wonderful book of conversations with sixteen Japanese ceramic artists titled ‘Listening to Clay’ was created by pioneering collectors Alice and Halsey North—readers of my column-- and most of their collection was also donated to the MET in NYC. This book is the first time to read in-depth conversations in English with the respective artists, conversations were recorded on the North’s multiple visit to the artists studios. 『Listening to Clay』 I highly recommend for anyone’s Japanese pottery library.

The appeal of Japanese ceramics

So what’s the appeal to foreign collectors and museums? Surely, the history and unique characteristics of regional pottery. One can learn, for example, so much about Meiji period politics by researching about Hagi pottery and that leads into that region’s unique pottery and history.

Secondly, the connection with Tea and Zen that adds not only history yet spirituality and mindfulness, Holding a teabowl with both hands is like holding a prayer, hands cupped around the bowl in silence and reverence. One can transcend their own consciousness in silence and become one with all, just like that, in an instant; that’s the wisdom of Tea.

My Gaze Shaped by Western Aesthetics

Getting back to my beginnings when I first came to Japan to live, that was at the end of 1984, I had been educated in the west and was taught about art and beauty through a Western’s eye of perfection, glossy colors, and symmetry. So the first works that attracted me were colorful porcelain wares, like Kutani and Arita, because I could ‘get it’ as there was nothing challenging my narrow view of what constitutes ‘beauty.’

Then one day a friend presented me with a Bizen yunomi/teacup and that turned my world upside down. It had a stone burst/ishihaze on it, a bit lopsided, ‘ugly’ earthy colors and no visible charm that said look at me. And that’s when a lightbulb went off in my head and told me to shut up! Look-sense-experience in silence, stop trying to understand this foreign tradition by comparing it to what you know, using a language that has no relevance to what your seeing and holding.

The yunomi became my teacher. I learned about Japanese aesthetic terms such as yugen, wabi-sabi, shibui, soboku, hin and jimi from that yunomi. It all made sense now and I seriously got an addiction to Bizen pottery that I, after decades now, have found no cure for.

Another work that became a teacher is the very famous Iga mizusashi called Yaburebukuro or Broken Pouch. Upon first viewing it I thought for sure it was a failure from the kiln, it has cracks, all kinds of grit attached to the side, it’s asymmetrical and it’s not a very attractive form. Yet what was I missing? It’s so famous, why?

Yaburebukuro was like a seashell, a stone, a branch, all true to themselves in their unique character, born from nature just as Yaburebukuro was born from the intense firing of the kiln. After these two experiences I could never look at Japanese pottery the same way, and certainly porcelain, which is of course beautiful, didn’t capture my senses anymore the way that wood-fired works did. My addiction deepened.

Passing On to the Future

Yet I wish that would also happen to more Japanese people, become addicted, in a good way of course, to the glorious culture you have.

It’s taken centuries and countless craftsman to create all the various crafts that are dotted throughout Japan. Baskets, lacquer, washi, pottery, indigo, pewter, porcelain, and many more are the backbone of Japanese culture and unfortunately many traditions are struggling to survive.

I sincerely hope that more Japanese will pay more attention, cherish and support these various traditions before many are lost. What do you live with now that will inspire, bring joy and beauty to someone in the future?

By using crafts we cherish we’ll use them with care and understand that even a small thing as a handmade plate or cup is related to a much bigger theme of Japanese culture and it’s long rich history of beautiful daily objects.