Economy | ANALYSIS
Households to take hit from tax hike
by Tomoko Otake
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people’s financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
Art Sep 25, 2013
Chawan: Simply, some of the hardest works of pottery to create
by Robert Yellin
In the world of Japanese traditional ceramics there is not one form held in higher esteem than a chawan, a “mere” bowl used to serve whipped green tea. For more than 400 years this celebrated clay form has challenged potters to create a perfect ...
Openings in Tokyo Sep 4, 2013
'Special Exhibition: Momoyama Ceramic Masterpieces — Shino, Ki-seto, Seto-guro and Oribe Wares'
by Marie Omata
The ceramics in this exhibition date to the late-Momoyama Period (1573-1615) and all hail from the Mino Province in modern-day Gifu Prefecture. Four kinds of Mino ceramic ware became representative of the Momoyama Period — Shino (thick white glaze with red marks), Ki-Seto (yellow ...
Openings outside Tokyo Aug 14, 2013
'The Hakutoro Collection: The Grace of Ancient Chinese Ceramics'
by Alisa Yamasaki
Art collector Kinji Usato, also known as Hakutoro, shares an expansive selection of Chinese ceramics for this show at The Museum of Oriental Ceramics. Ninety works, spanning 5,000 years of Chinese ceramics from the Neolithic age to the Qing Dynasty, from his personal collection ...
Art Jul 24, 2013
Crawling through the mud in style
by Robert Yellin
It’s quite fitting that the major Osamu Suzuki (1926-2001) retrospective, the first since the ceramicist’s passing, is taking place at The National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto, the hometown of the artist. Suzuki was one of Japan’s most important ceramic artists of the ...
Openings in Tokyo Jul 10, 2013
'Living National Treasure, Matsui Kosei: A Retrospective'
by Alisa Yamasaki
Kosei Matsui, a designated living national treasure, fused traditional techniques with his own creative expression to craft beautiful ceramics. To commemorate a decade since his passing, this exhibition showcases some of the finest examples of Matsui’s work alongside the tools that he used and ...
Art Jun 13, 2013
The collector who saw the fine print
by Yoko Haruhara
The Nezu Museum is currently showing “Ceramics and Ukiyo-e Masterpieces from the Hagi Uragami Museum,” an exhibition of outstanding artworks collected over the years by the entrepreneur Toshiro Uragami, who donated them to the Hagi Uragami Museum in Yamaguchi Prefecture in 1996. How did ...
Art Jun 6, 2013
Get intimate with Ryota Aoki's work and discover its secrets
by Matthew Larking
Known mostly for producing exquisite white ceramic ware, Ryota Aoki has about-turned for his current exhibition at Tomio Koyama Gallery, Kyoto. The overwhelming shift is to black wares: think practical, utilitarian tableware such as plates, cups, pitchers and vases. Inundated with orders, particularly from ...
Openings outside Tokyo May 30, 2013
"The Magic of Ceramics: Artistic Inspiration"
by Marie Omata
During the 1950s, ceramic art in America and Europe began to shift from being seen as a craft to being appreciated as an art form. This was partly due to popular artists, such as Joan Miro and Pablo Picasso, who often created abstract artworks ...
Openings in Tokyo May 23, 2013
'Kosometsuke and Shonzui: The Blue and White Tea Ceramics of Japanese Admiration'
by Delilah Romasanta
Tea ceramics have long been a symbol of traditional Asian art. The ko-sometsuke and shonzui styles, or Chinese blue-and-white tea ceramics popular at the end of the Ming period were often used in Japan for a tea ceremony known as wabi-cha. Such ceramic works ...