Though most of the world loves labels, it's hard to give one to the pottery of Norio Kamiya. Many collectors of Japanese pottery feel more comfortable if they know that this style is called Kutani or that one Arita or that this potter has won this award and exhibits at such-and-such gallery. Only after many questions are answered does the potential purchaser decide if the pot comes home or stays; it's an intellectual decision.
Yet though in Japan labels play a big part in collectors' minds, very few good collections were ever built this way. It's much better to listen to your heart and buy what appeals to you, no questions asked.
With that said, leave your questions at home and go see Kamiya's colorful pottery exhibition, at Ginza's Wako Hall until May 31.
Actually, Kamiya gets asked quite often what style of pottery he makes. Most Japanese styles derive their names from the location in which they're fired, so something made in the city of Bizen becomes Bizen-yaki by definition.
Kamiya, however, lives in Chiba, where there is no local tradition to name his wares. So he named it after himself -- Kamiya-yaki. Solves everything and puts the overly inquisitive mind to rest.
Just as his answer to the above question was calculated, so is Kamiya-yaki. When he puts a pot into his kiln he's pretty sure of how it's going to pop out. The pot gods have blessed him with a sensitive eye, a skilled hand and a fine technique.
He was born in 1940 in the potting town of Mashiko; his father was a third-generation potter. As a young boy he played around the workshop and kiln, but he wanted nothing to do with the shokunin or craftsman way of doing things, like throwing 300 tea cups (yunomi) of exactly the same dimensions in a given slot of time. On the contrary, he wanted each of his works to be full of his personality, instantly identifiable as Kamiya-yaki.
He has succeeded.
It's hard, though, to overlook the influence of one of his teachers, the late Koichi Tamura (1918-1987). Tamura was named a Living National Treasure in 1986 for his iron underglaze paintings, and Kamiya has incorporated that glaze into his own work, as well as Tamura's fondness for floral motifs.
Calling his technique tetsu-e dosai (iron paintings, copper colors), Kamiya makes his pots canvases for plums, chrysanthemums and grapevines that dance around or over his jars and platters.
Kamiya uses green and also makes good use of reds, often painting designs over a white slip that he airbrushes onto his work to form a "canvas." Other times he uses a sgraffito technique in which he carves a leaf pattern on the slip which contrasts with the color of the clay. His technique is so respected that he writes a regular column on the subject in Japan's premier pottery magazine, Honoho Geijutsu.
Even though not much of the clay body can be seen on Kamiya's work, he is very particular about the kind of clay he uses. Mashiko and Bizen clay is what he chooses, and he buys the Mashiko clay from the last remaining handmade clay processor in Mashiko -- all the rest there is machine processed. It seems that his glazes and firing technique work best with his hometown clay, which has a high iron content. Sometimes cheesecloth impressions are left in the clay, giving it a little extra texture.
I can't say I'm a big fan of Kamiya-yaki style; my own tastes run to the blistered and earthy tones of wood-fired pottery. Still, Kamiya's work is well received because it's purely Japanese and sits very prettily next to a Bizen jar or, better yet, on its own -- so I think I'll leave all my superfluous questions at home also and take a look with a fresh eye at the pottery known as Kamiya-yaki.
About 60 pieces will be on display for sale at the exhibition, including jars (tsubo), platters, incense burners (koro) and tableware (shokki).
Regular readers of Ceramic Scene may recall a column I wrote a few months back about Hagi veteran and Living National Treasure Kyusetsu Miwa XI. Well, his eldest son Ryusaku is in Tokyo this time, exhibiting 30 chawan (tea bowls), which he terms ryukiwan ("dragon-power bowls") at Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi department store's sixth floor gallery May 30-June 5.
Ryusaku's chawan are very different from his traditionally oriented dad's. For one thing, I've never seen any Hagi chawan with dragons floating around the surface. (The first kanji in Ryusaku's name means "dragon.")
In the past Ryusaku has delved into the themes of love, life and death in his works. He has even made chawan with little red hearts dotting the surface; I find them a bit too cute. Other novel ideas he has put into clay are his high-heel series and "Himiko," a provocative series in gold with large fissures blasting the surface. Himiko was the ruler of the ancient kingdom Yamataikoku.
These dragon chawan are much more to my liking than any of his work I've seen before, with the image of a dragon boldly incised into the creamy white glaze that Hagi wares are so well known for. Some of the dragons on his chawan seem to be flying in a white cloud (hakuun) while others, set against a light purple glaze (shiun), seem to be flying into a setting sun.
Many of the chawan have a "mountain ridge" drinking lip (yamamichi) and a split cross foot ring (warikodai) in the gritty daido clay from Hagi.
Ryusaku is a very charismatic figure and has a large following; he'll be in the gallery most days.
Other shows
At Fujinoya Gallery in Sano, Tochigi Prefecture, there is a great opportunity to see 1,000 sake cups (guinomi) as the gallery hosts its second exhibition in a guinomi series; the first one was a few months ago. I went to that one and was amazed at the varieti Mr. Kobayashi, the owner, had accumulated; it seems that an elderly collector was parting with his collection. I picked up a few gems and no doubt there will be more there this time. Over 150 potters will be represented. Starts today, until June 7. Call the gallery at (0283) 23-0700 for further information.
One of my favorite Bizen potters, but not a very well-known one, is 80-year-old Taiyu Moritoki, who will be having a celebratory exhibition June 1-7 in Okayama City at Asuka Gallery, (086) 222-2854.
Moritoki is also known as an outstanding calligrapher and scrolls will be displayed alongside his Bizen, Karatsu and Shino wares.
* Iga specialist Kanji Atarashi, at Shinjuku Odakyu department store's seventh floor gallery until May 30.
* A look at how flowers are used in vessels, at Kogei Murata, (03) 3571-2505, in the Ginza Nine building until June 1. Gen Onodera's pots will be used by flower arranger Kozan Okada.
* Colorful Kutani master Minori Yoshida, at Yokohama Sogo department store until May 29.
* Tokoname's Kimiaki Takeuchi, in Nagoya at Marue until May 31.
Sake expert and Japan Times columnist John Gauntner and I will host another sake-pottery lecture in Tokyo June 10; for information contact either of us.
I will be planning a pottery trip to Bizen or another area soon; to go on the contact list, e-mail or fax me.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.