Tsujimura Kai 辻村塊 (b. 1976), Iga vase, 28 x 16 cm. (11 x 6.3 in.), with box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

Rivulets of green ash glaze encircle the rough clay of this vase like a vine. The perfect balance of decoration and form lend it a fascinating tension.

In 1994, Tsujimura Kai began to study pottery with his father, the renowned ceramic artist Tsujimura Shiro. In 2000, he built his own kiln, house, and studio in the middle of mountains in Sakuraito and began his career as an independent potter. His work can be found in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Smithsonian, and many other institutions worldwide.

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Tsujimura Kai 辻村塊 (b. 1976), Yakishime vase, 25.5 x 11 cm. (10 x 4.3 in.), with box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

This unusually shaped vase is an example of yakishime ware—high-fired stoneware that’s left unglazed or, as in this case, glazed only with spontaneously occurring wood-ash glaze in the kiln during firing.

In 1994, Tsujimura Kai began to study pottery with his father, the renowned ceramic artist Tsujimura Shiro. In 2000, he built his own kiln, house, and studio in the middle of mountains in Sakuraito and began his career as an independent potter. His work can be found in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Smithsonian, and many other institutions worldwide.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020), stoneware tea bowl, 15 x 8.5 cm., with box signed and sealed by the artist.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues.

He was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020), Oribe sake pitcher, 16 x 12 x 10 cm., with box signed and sealed by the artist.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues.

He was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020), Oribe jar, 25.2 x 24 cm., with box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues.

He was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020), Oribe tea bowl, 4.5 x 9 cm., with box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues. And he was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020), glazed sake cup, 7.1 x 4.9 cm., with box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues. And he was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020) glazed sake cup, 8 x 7 cm, box signed and sealed by the artist.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues. And he was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Koie Ryoji 鯉江良二 (1938-2020), kohiki sake flask, 15 x 8 cm, box signed and sealed by artist.

“It is my job to betray people’s expectations,” said the late potter Koie Ryoji. Born in Tokoname, one of the oldest ceramic centers in Japan, Koie Ryoji studied ceramics locally until 1966, when he set off on his own. He quickly emerged as one of the most forward-thinking and unconventional artists in Japan. Koie made everything from tea bowls to abstract clay sculptures that resembled the New York City skyline, working in a multiplicity of styles, and hosted ceramic happenings that explored social and political issues. And he was outspoken about what he saw as the complacency of the Japanese artworld, with its system of juried competitions and department store exhibitions. “There are many handy people around,” Koie said, “and just being a handy person is not good enough. I feel sorry for those skillful people. They do everything smoothly so therefore they don't convey feelings in their work.” Koie’s work has been exhibited in many public collections, including those of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Seoul Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Centre National de Georges Pompidou.

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Morioka Shigeyoshi 森岡成好 (1948-), 15.5 x 8 cm. (6.1 x 3.1 in.), with paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

A thoroughly unconventional artist, Morioka Shigeyoshi makes joyous, deceptively simple vessels, like this unglazed tea bowl. They capture the flavor of the earth in the shadow of Mount Koya, in Wakayama Prefecture, where Morioka digs for clay and where traces of human settlement date back 25,000 years. Morioka’s work can be found in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art and other public institutions around the world..

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Yamada Kazu 山田和 (b. 1954), Iga sake bottle, 17 x 9 cm., with fitted paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

Streams of natural ash glaze, called biddoro, encircle this Iga-style sake bottle, showing that it was fired on its side. A nephew of Living National Treasure Yamada Jozan III, and a disciple of Mino potter Kato Tokuro (1897-1985), Yamada has blazed a far more modern path than his famous teacher. His distinctive vessels, fired in a multiplicity of styles, show off his light, elegant touch and create an impression of movement, reflecting Yamada’s restless artistic exploration.

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Tsujimura Shiro 辻村史朗 (1947-), Iga hanging tea ceremony vase, 12 x 5.4 cm., box signed an sealed by artist.

One of Japan's foremost ceramic artists, Tsujimura is also an outsider to the world of traditional Japanese pottery, working in many forms, including Bizen, Oribe, and Shigaraki. In the New York Times, the critic Holland Cotter called Tsujimura's ceramics "some of the most expressive abstract painting around," and perhaps it's no surprise that the potter was first trained as a painter. After completing his art education in Tokyo, Tsujimura spent two years at Sanshoji, a Zen monastery in Nara, and then returned to his father's farm to take up pottery. During the next seven years, he built a house and a workshop in the mountains of Nara, where he lives with his wife, three dogs and more than 20 cats. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums worldwide, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Stockholm Museum of Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

This kake hainare, a small vase meant to hang from the wall of a tea house, shows a rich range of kiln effects. The rivulets of emerald biddoro—the glass-like glaze crated by the mixture of wood ash and molten feldspar—are known as dragonfly eyes.

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Tsujimura Shiro 辻村史朗 (1947-), Iga hanging gourd-shaped tea ceremony vase, 15.6 x 8.3 cm., box signed an sealed by artist.

One of Japan's foremost ceramic artists, Tsujimura is also an outsider to the world of traditional Japanese pottery, working in many forms, including Bizen, Oribe, and Shigaraki. In the New York Times, the critic Holland Cotter called Tsujimura's ceramics "some of the most expressive abstract painting around," and perhaps it's no surprise that the potter was first trained as a painter. After completing his art education in Tokyo, Tsujimura spent two years at Sanshoji, a Zen monastery in Nara, and then returned to his father's farm to take up pottery. During the next seven years, he built a house and a workshop in the mountains of Nara, where he lives with his wife, three dogs and more than 20 cats. His work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums worldwide, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Stockholm Museum of Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

This gourd-shaped kake hainare, a small vase meant to hang from the wall of a tea house, shows a rich range of kiln effects. The rivulets of emerald biddoro—the glass-like glaze crated by the mixture of wood ash and molten feldspar—are known as dragonfly eyes.

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Nakashima Katsunori 中島勝乃利 (1963-2014), stoneware sake flask, 14.1 x 7.4 cm., box signed and sealed by artist.

Nakashima was the uchi deshi (principle disciple) of the great ceramic artist Koie Ryoji (1938-2020). HIs work, like this playful sake bottle, reflects Koie’s avant-garde style along with other influences, like the five years Nakashima spent teaching in Toluca, Mexico. His work has only grown more influential since his premature death in 2014.

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Kim Hono 金憲鎬 (b.1958), stoneware sake cup, 6.3 x 5.9 cm., with box decorated and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

As a student, Kim Hono endured discrimination that still faces people of Korean ancestry in Japan. Teachers told him that he should take a profession suitable for someone of his ethnicity: taxi driver, plumber, pachinko parlor operator. Instead, Kim became an independent potter and an artist devoted to boundless experimentation.

In 2012, Honoho Geijutsu (The Art of Fire), one of Japan’s leading ceramics magazines, asked 50 artists to submit a personal statement describing their work. Kim offered a single sentence: Kaze wo kanjiru (Feeling the wind).

Kim’s work can be found in the collection of the Minneapolis Institute of Art and many other museums.

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Masafumi Onishi 大西雅文 (1980-). Stoneware tea bowl, 13.8 x 7.6 cm. (5.4 x 3 in.), with paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist, kiln paperwork, and sealed cloth.

Masafumi Onishi is arguably the most exciting ceramic artist working in Tamba, in Hyogo Prefecture, one of the six ancient kilns of Japan. During his long anagama firings, he says that only a few pieces among the hundreds in the kiln turn brilliant red, like this striking unglazed tea bowl. Have you seen anything like it?

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Tamura Koichi 田村耕一 (1918-1987), Mashiko vase with iron oxide design, 26 x 24 cm., fitted paulownia box.

Look at this unusual vase by Tamura Koichi: Using persimmon iron-oxide, he brushed text over the cream slip, then covered it with a transparent glaze. Delicate pink spots bloom on the surface. For many years, Tamura was a teacher as an artist, educating countless potters in Mashiko and, later, Tokyo. In 1986, a year before his death, he was declared a Living National Treasure for his mastery of tetsu-e (iron-glaze decorated ceramics).

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Murata Juko (Tetsuo) 村田哲夫 (珠光) (1922-), Shino vase, 17 x 7 cm., signed on the bottom, box signed and sealed by artist.

The renowned potter, painter, calligrapher and musician Tsukigata Nahiko (1923-2006) was a flamboyant personality known for a style of ceramics he dubbed Oni-Shino, in which the Shino glaze mutates and runs while mixing with wood ash in the kiln.

But relatively nearby, there was another, lesser-known potter and glaze scholar, born a year before Tsukigata, who worked in the same unusual style. Murata Juko (Tetsuo) studied under Kato Tokuro (1897-1985) and Kato Hajime (1900-1968), two leading lights of Japanese ceramic art, and made work that was more delicate and lyrical than that of his more famous neighbor.

This vase shows the wide range of colors and textures Murata achieved in his anagama kiln. He sometimes referred to his style as Juko-Shino, perhaps to differentiate it from Tsukigata’s, or perhaps as a slightly ironic jab at his contemporary.

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Murata Juko (Tetsuo) 村田哲夫 (珠光) (1922-), Shino sake bottle, 15 x 9.5 cm., signed on the bottom, box signed and sealed by artist.

The renowned potter, painter, calligrapher and musician Tsukigata Nahiko (1923-2006) was a flamboyant personality known for a style of ceramics he dubbed Oni-Shino, in which the Shino glaze mutates and runs while mixing with wood ash in the kiln.

But relatively nearby, there was another, lesser-known potter and glaze scholar, born a year before Tsukigata, who worked in the same unusual style. Murata Juko (Tetsuo) studied under Kato Tokuro (1897-1985) and Kato Hajime (1900-1968), two leading lights of Japanese ceramic art, and made work that was more delicate and lyrical than that of his more famous neighbor.

This sake flask shows the wide range of colors and textures Murata achieved in his anagama kiln. He sometimes referred to his style as Juko-Shino, perhaps to differentiate it from Tsukigata’s, or perhaps as a slightly ironic jab at his contemporary.

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Murata Juko (Tetsuo) 村田哲夫 (珠光) (1922-), Shino sake cup, 6 x 4.7 cm., signed on the bottom, box signed and sealed by artist.

The renowned potter, painter, calligrapher and musician Tsukigata Nahiko (1923-2006) was a flamboyant personality known for a style of ceramics he dubbed Oni-Shino, in which the Shino glaze mutates and runs while mixing with wood ash in the kiln.

But relatively nearby, there was another, lesser-known potter and glaze scholar, born a year before Tsukigata, who worked in the same unusual style. Murata Juko (Tetsuo) studied under Kato Tokuro (1897-1985) and Kato Hajime (1900-1968), two leading lights of Japanese ceramic art, and made work that was more delicate and lyrical than that of his more famous neighbor.

This sake cup shows the wide range of colors and textures Murata achieved in his anagama kiln. He sometimes referred to his style as Juko-Shino, perhaps to differentiate it from Tsukigata’s, or perhaps as a slightly ironic jab at his contemporary.

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Murata Juko (Tetsuo) 村田哲夫 (珠光) (1922-), Shino sake cup, 6.3 x 5.2 cm., signed on the bottom, box signed and sealed by artist.

The renowned potter, painter, calligrapher and musician Tsukigata Nahiko (1923-2006) was a flamboyant personality known for a style of ceramics he dubbed Oni-Shino, in which the Shino glaze mutates and runs while mixing with wood ash in the kiln.

But relatively nearby, there was another, lesser-known pINQUIREotter and glaze scholar, born a year before Tsukigata, who worked in the same unusual style. Murata Juko (Tetsuo) studied under Kato Tokuro (1897-1985) and Kato Hajime (1900-1968), two leading lights of Japanese ceramic art, and made work that was more delicate and lyrical than that of his more famous neighbor.

This sake cup shows the wide range of colors and textures Murata achieved in his anagama kiln. He sometimes referred to his style as Juko-Shino, perhaps to differentiate it from Tsukigata’s, or perhaps as a slightly ironic jab at his contemporary.

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Murata Juko (Tetsuo) 村田哲夫 (珠光) (1922-), Shino sake cup, 6.2 x 5.2 cm., signed on the bottom, box signed and sealed by artist.

The renowned potter, painter, calligrapher and musician Tsukigata Nahiko (1923-2006) was a flamboyant personality known for a style of ceramics he dubbed Oni-Shino, in which the Shino glaze mutates and runs while mixing with wood ash in the kiln (a process known as yohen in Japanese).

But relatively nearby, there was another, lesser-known potter and glaze scholar, born a year before Tsukigata, who worked in the same unusual style. Murata Juko (Tetsuo) 村田哲夫 (珠光) studied under Kato Tokuro (1897-1985) and Kato Hajime (1900-1968), two leading lights of Japanese ceramic art, and made work that was more delicate and lyrical than that of his more famous neighbor.

This sake cup shows the wide range of colors and textures Murata achieved in his anagama kiln. He sometimes referred to his style as Juko-Shino, perhaps to differentiate it from Tsukigata’s, or perhaps as a slightly ironic jab at his contemporary.

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Nakagawa Jinenbo 中川自然坊 (1953-2011), Karatsu sake flask, 15 x 11 cm., box signed and sealed by the artist.

Nakagawa Jinenbo made uncannily expressive pottery, at once somber and playful. Jinenbo—whose name means “nature boy”—apprenticed with the genius of Karatsu, Tanaka Sajiro (b. 1937), before striking out on his own. His work explored the Korean roots of Karatsu ware while insisting on modernity; it combined rugged forms with unexpected textures and colors. Nakagawa Jinenbo died at the age of 57, at the height of his creativity. This sake bottle—with its buff, blue and white hues and rich textures—is a reflection of its unusual maker.

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Suzuki Goro 鈴木五郎 (1941-), Oribe sake flask, 17.9 x 9 cm. (6.7 x 3.5 in.), with kiln paperwork, cloth, and fitted paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist.

This asymmetrical sake flask in the Oribe style, made by one of the most inventive and original potters of the post-war period, is a delight for both the eye and hand.

Suzuki Goro’s work can be found in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Hetsens Museum in Dusseldorf, Germany, and many other public institutions.

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Suzuki Goro 鈴木五郎 (1941-), Shino sake bottle, 13.2 x 9.3 cm., fitted paulownia box signed by artist.

Of all the varieties of Shino pottery, the rarest is black Shino, which has the mystery of black pearls. You can see the range of effects in this sake bottle by Goro Suzuki, one of the most inventive Japanese potters of the last century. His placement of white spots amid the black glaze suggests shadows and light, or possibly the moon and starlight.

Suzuki’s work can be found in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Hetsens Museum in Dusseldorf, Germany, and many other public institutions.

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Tani Seiemon 谷清右衛門 (1913-), Shigaraki vase, 24.6 x 16.2 cm., fitted paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist.

This vase by Tani Seiemon looks like it emerged from a volcanic crater. It is crusted with and eroded by ash, which blends with rivulets of natural biddoro glaze. Seiemon is one of the potters responsible for the restoration of modern Shigaraki ware; his work can be found in the collections of The British Museum, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and other public institutions.

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Tsukamoto Haruhiko 塚本治彦 (1959-), “Iga Oribe” vase, 23 x 13 cm., cloth sealed by the artist, box signed and sealed by artist.

The Mino-based ceramic artist Tsukamoto Haruhiko makes work that draws on “the esthetics of failure.” Many of his rugged, rough forms are made in the Oribe style, but in recent years he has branched out into Korean Karatsu and a style he calls “Iga Oribe,” captured in this vase, which blends applied and natural ash glazes.

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Shimizu Kosho 清水公照 (1911-1999), Kyoto ware tea bowl named “Sunrise,” potted by Okuda Hideyama (b. 1944) and painted with enso and calligraphy by Shimizu Kosho, 13 x 8 cm., with fitted paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist.

Shimizu Kosho was born in the famous castle town of Himeji on January 3rd, 1911, and entered Todai-ji temple in Nara as a novice monk in in 1927. Upon graduation in Buddhist studies from Ryokoku University in 1933, he took up residence at Tenryu-ji for four years to study and practice Zen under the guidance of the Abbot Seki Seisetsu (1877-1945). When he returned to Todai-ji, he became a teacher. 1969 marked a turning point in Kosho's career, when he was appointed as Head of Religious Affairs of the Kegon Tradition of Zen Buddhism. In 1975, the Abbot Kamitsukasa Kaiun (1907-1975) died and Shimizu Kosho was chosen as his successor, becoming the 207th Abbot of Todai-ji. He remained in this position for only a short time, resigning in 1981.

For the remaining nearly twenty years of his life, Shimizu Kosho was dedicated to the life of an artist. He became a prolific "eccentric" painter, calligrapher, and figurative potter. Unlike most artist-monks, he did not limit himself to painting in only black ink, but enjoyed a full range of colors. His writing and painting styles are what may be described as obsessively impulsive. His clay figures are charmingly naive; sculptural refinement was clearly not one of his aims.

Shimizu Kosho also painted ceramics created by other potters, like this tea bowl by the Shigaraki potter Okuda Hideyama (b. 1944), with his distinctive figures and calligraphy. In 1994, when the Shosha Art and Craft Museum (in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture) was founded, Shimizu Kosho donated a large number of his artworks and was made its honorary director.

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Shimizu Kosho 清水公照 (1911-1999), Kyoto ware sake bottle with iron-oxide design by Shimizu Kosho, 13.4 x 10.3 cm., box signed and sealed by artist.

Shimizu Kosho was born in the famous castle town of Himeji on January 3rd, 1911, and entered Todai-ji temple in Nara as a novice monk in in 1927. Upon graduation in Buddhist studies from Ryokoku University in 1933, he took up residence at Tenryu-ji for four years to study and practice Zen under the guidance of the Abbot Seki Seisetsu (1877-1945). When he returned to Todai-ji, he became a teacher or junior monks. 1969 marked a turning point in Kosho's career, when he was appointed as Head of Religious Affairs of the Kegon Tradition of Zen Buddhism. In 1975, the Abbot Kamitsukasa Kaiun (1907-1975) died and Shimizu Kosho was chosen as his successor, becoming the 207th Abbot of Todai-ji. He remained in this position for only a short time, resigning in 1981.

For the remaining nearly twenty years of his life, Shimizu Kosho was dedicated to the life of an artist. He became a prolific "eccentric" painter, calligrapher, and figurative potter. Unlike most artist-monks, he did not limit himself to painting in only black ink, but enjoyed a full range of colors. His writing and painting styles are what may be described as obsessively impulsive. His clay figures are charmingly naive; sculptural refinement was clearly not one of his aims.

Shimizu Kosho also painted ceramics created by other potters, like this amusing sake bottle, with his distinctive figures and calligraphy. In 1994, when the Shosha Art and Craft Museum (in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture) was founded, Shimizu Kosho donated a large number of his artworks and was made its honorary director.

Nishiura Takeshi (西浦武) b.1941, Echizen vase, 23x20 cm., fitted paulownia box signed and sealed by the artist.

Echizen (called Fukui Prefecture today) is one of the oldest sites of ceramic production in Japan, though the styles of pottery practiced there remain under-recognized and obscured by those of Echizen’s better-known neighbors. Along with Kumano Kuroemon, Nishiura Takeshi is a master who quietly produces Echizen’s distinctive ceramics in a broad range of expressions. This unusual heart-shaped vase shows the striking glaze effects of the high-temperature firings traditional to the area. Like most of Nishiura’s vessels, it has been fired twice.

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Nishiura Takeshi (西浦武) b.1941, Echizen chawan, 11.8 x 7.8 cm., with signed and sealed paulownia box, sealed cloth, and kiln paperwork.

Echizen (called Fukui Prefecture today) is one of the oldest sites of ceramic production in Japan, though the styles of pottery practiced there remain under-recognized and obscured by those of Echizen’s better-known neighbors. Nishiura Takeshi is a master who quietly produces Echizen’s distinctive ceramics in a broad range of expressions. This bracing tea bowl is reminiscent of late winter frost.

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