D.H. Rosen, an occasional contributor to The Japan Times Arts Page, is also a ceramicist who has been studying art at Tama Art University in Tokyo since 2004. Unlike many foreign ceramic artists who come to absorb the traditional wabi-sabi aesthetic of traditional pottery, Rosen was interested in Tama because it is the one university that encourages the use of clay as a medium for nonfunctional art — as opposed to solely as a material for vessels. In advance of a live performance involving his works that Rosen will be held Friday night at SuperDeluxe in Nishi-Azabu, Tokyo, we spoke with him about the current state of ceramics in Japan.
Is the tradition of vessels still lively?
Some people are going to hate me for saying this, and I'm probably greatly influenced by my professor, Kimpei Nakamura, but I don't see the point of making the same shino and oribe tea bowls over and over. How could people today ever make a better Momoyama- style tea bowl than the people who lived in the Momoyama Period (1338-1573)? The artists who excite me are people like Ryuichi Kakurezaki, who studied under Living National Treasure Jun Isezaki. Kakurezaki's mastery of Bizen-style pottery is unmatched, but his forms are completely contemporary.