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Robert Yellin
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jul 9, 2003
Goro Suzuki: Honored to live in his time
Wrapped in flickering candlelight, koto master Tamiko Asai spoke to the audience in a hushed voice:
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jun 11, 2003
Why perfection isn't enough
Light, cool, sleek and refined describe the large celadon bowl that won 1 million yen and the Grand Prix Katsura-no-Miya Prize at the 17th Biennial Japan Ceramic Art Exhibition. This juried exhibition showcases some of the finest works in this "pottery oasis" of Japan and offers a tasty smorgasbord for...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
May 14, 2003
A 'smashing' place for pots
It was 20 years ago today . . . that the famous Kikuchi Collection of Modern Japanese Ceramics was shown to "smashing" reviews at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. The 300-piece collection sparked a great interest in modern and contemporary Japanese ceramics that has continued to this day. The...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 30, 2003
A gathering of Kyoto's ancient masters
Before the advent of 20th-century brand-name designers such as Kenzo, Miyake or Mori, there was Kenzan of Kyoto -- back in the Edo Period that is. His instantly recognizable signature was not found on any trendy kimono or handbag of the day, however, but on clay vessels.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Apr 9, 2003
Sun, sea, sand and . . . ceramics
The Izu Peninsula, just an hour out of Tokyo, has some of the finest scenery in all of Japan. Rugged coastlines, clear views of Mount Fuji, pristine forests with rivers and waterfalls, not to mention the many soothing hot-spring resorts dotting the land, shape Izu into a very attractive destination....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Mar 12, 2003
The good, the great -- and the freaky
Japan, without a doubt, has the world's largest number of art museums devoted solely to pottery -- more than 500 venues, I've heard. That's a lot of beauty (or not) to take in.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Feb 12, 2003
Mountain man who walked the path of art
"Born alone, will die alone; come alone, will be gone alone; study alone, walk alone": This is said to have been the mantra of one of Japan's greatest 20th-century artists, the boisterous, arrogant and brilliant Rosanjin Kitaoji (1883-1959).
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jan 29, 2003
And this year's ceramics winners are. . .
Awards. We all love them, whether they are for movies, music, or for sports personalities. The art world here in Japan is no different, and there are many awards to honor those who have excelled in their respective art forms.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jan 8, 2003
Redeemers with feet of clay
Of the 14 ceramic objects designated as national treasures in Japan, the fact that no fewer than eight are chawan (tea bowls) is a clear sign of their importance in the culture.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Dec 11, 2002
In search of the real artist-potter Ogata Kenzan
"Sensational art finds are both desired and feared: desired because they become a form of pleasure and capital; feared because they displace something or somebody. Japan has had its share of such moments."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Nov 13, 2002
Look again at potting traditions
In the world of Japanese ceramics, certain styles have clearly defined identities that have been appreciated down the centuries. Mere mention of Bizen pottery will likely bring to mind a rustic, brown, natural ash-glazed style.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Oct 9, 2002
Pottery worth giving it all up for
Say the word "Momoyama" to any Japanese pottery connoisseurs, and their eyes will inevitably light up. Most ceramic enthusiasts would give up any Saturday-night vice to own just one Momoyama Shino, Bizen or Karatsu guinomi (sake cup) or chawan (tea bowl).
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 25, 2002
Riches of the sea
Few Japanese ceramic artists have stamped their visions into clay as eloquently as Yoshiro Kimura.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Sep 11, 2002
A dream of living pots
Koichi Takita looks more like a Zen monk than a world-renowned ceramic artist. His shaven head and glowing demeanor exude the sense of a man who has attained enlightenment while playing with mud.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Aug 14, 2002
Potter digs in to unearth real 'clay flavor'
The great Mashiko potter Shoji Hamada once wrote that, "the thing to remember is that the simplest clay is the best. Clay itself is already the most complex of mixtures because it is alive, a living thing." When it comes to shaping that "living thing," too many modern potters feel the need to stamp their...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jul 10, 2002
Summer sees ceramic talents in full bloom
Crunchy powerhouses of protein and vitamin E, sunflower seeds are much consumed in the West though their health benefits have never really been appreciated here in Japan. When it comes to pottery, we sometimes see himawari (sunflowers) painted on porcelains, but I've never come across a ceramic one complete...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Jun 26, 2002
Bringing the tabletop into the gallery
On the cover of the catalog for an exhibition now at the National Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo is -- ready for this? -- a shoyusashi (soy-sauce bottle). I find that quite odd, as the museum houses the hallowed arts of painting, sculpture and the like. A shoyusashi? Come on now, it just doesn't seem...
COMMUNITY
May 26, 2002
Fired with flavor
The Hagi yunomi (teacup) on my desk is stained from years of use, and some might even say it looks a bit shabby. I prefer to call it full of aji (flavor), the way a pottery connoisseur describes an item with character and patina.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
May 8, 2002
Heart and soul in your hands
A list of the things we humans take for granted would be long indeed. Not wishing to embark on a colossal environmental-spiritual- humanitarian itemization, I'll keep my list real short. One item, in fact: a clay mug.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
Apr 10, 2002
Remaking form, recapturing spirit
Hand grenades, gas burners and patio furniture are not items usually associated with ancient potting centers, yet in Shigaraki, southern Shiga Prefecture, even these odd items have been fired.

Longform

Wozme, founded by dancer and choreographer Wakaba Kohei, is composed of Kana Kitty, Ami Ishii, Akane Watanabe and Natsuki. Its aim is to inject elegance and beauty, traits traditionally associated with femininity, into the sometimes grotesque art form of butoh dance.
Wozme, an all-women dance troupe, wants to move the needle in butoh