Yoshinori Akazawa (Japanese: ⾚澤 嘉則, romanized: Akazawa Yoshinori, born 1971 -) is a contemporary artist and ceramicist.…Yoshinori Akazawa (Japanese: ⾚澤 嘉則, romanized: Akazawa Yoshinori, born 1971 -) is a contemporary artist and ceramicist. He is known as the 5th generation head of the Akazawa Roseki studio (Akazawa Roseki V), specializing in traditional and contemporary Japanese ceramics.
Akihiro Maeta (前田 昭博, Maeta Akihiro) (from Tottori, Japan, born May 1, 1954) is a Japanese ceramic artist known for…Akihiro Maeta (前田 昭博, Maeta Akihiro) (from Tottori, Japan, born May 1, 1954) is a Japanese ceramic artist known for white porcelain. He is a Living National Treasure of Japan and a member of the Japan Kōgei Association. Maeta's style is achieved by hand-forming his works as opposed to forming them on a potter's wheel. He uses his fingers, palms, and a blade to perfect the shape of his white porcelain sculptures.
Yoshiaki Fujiwara (藤原 喜明, Fujiwara Yoshiaki; April 27, 1949) is a Japanese professional wrestler, trainer and wrestling…Yoshiaki Fujiwara (藤原 喜明, Fujiwara Yoshiaki; April 27, 1949) is a Japanese professional wrestler, trainer and wrestling promoter. He is famous for his long career in wrestling, having worked in New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE (ZERO-ONE), and the two incarnations of shoot style promotion Universal Wrestling Federation. Fujiwara is known for his catch wrestling expertise, having been praised by fighters like Josh Barnett and Ken Shamrock. He was trained by Karl Gotch and has trained many MMA fighters and professional wrestlers. Fujiwara also has a strong background in Judo and Muay Thai.
Tiger Tateishi (タイガー立石) (December 20, 1941 - April 17, 1998), pen name of Kōichi Tateishi (Tateishi Kōichi (立石紘一) was a…Tiger Tateishi (タイガー立石) (December 20, 1941 - April 17, 1998), pen name of Kōichi Tateishi (Tateishi Kōichi (立石紘一) was a Japanese painter, mangaka, picture book artist, and ceramic artist.
Jun Isezaki (Japanese: 伊勢崎淳 Isezaki Jun; 20 February 1936 – 11 July 2026) was a Japanese ceramic artist and potter. A…Jun Isezaki (Japanese: 伊勢崎淳 Isezaki Jun; 20 February 1936 – 11 July 2026) was a Japanese ceramic artist and potter. A graduate of Okayama University, his works ranged from traditional tea ceramics to modern sculptures. In 2004, he was designated a National Treasure for his works. Isezaki died on 11 July 2026, at the age of 90.
Osamu Suzuki (鈴木 治, Suzuki Osamu) (1926-2001) was a Japanese ceramicist and one of the co-founders of the artist group…Osamu Suzuki (鈴木 治, Suzuki Osamu) (1926-2001) was a Japanese ceramicist and one of the co-founders of the artist group Sōdeisha (eng. "Crawling through Mud Association"), a Japanese avant-garde ceramics movement that arose following the end of the Second World War and served as a counter to the traditional forms and styles in modern Japanese ceramics, such as Mingei. Working in both iron-rich stoneware and porcelain, Suzuki developed his style considerably over the course of his career, beginning with functional vessels in his early work, and spanning to fully sculptural works (which he called "clay images") in the latter half of his career. Suzuki has been described by The Japan Times as "one of Japan's most important ceramic artists of the 20th century."
Masuo Ikeda (池田 満寿夫, Ikeda Masuo; February 23, 1934 – March 8, 1997) was a Japanese painter, printmaker, illustrator…Masuo Ikeda (池田 満寿夫, Ikeda Masuo; February 23, 1934 – March 8, 1997) was a Japanese painter, printmaker, illustrator, sculptor, ceramist, novelist, and film director from Nagano Prefecture.
Hiroaki Morino (森野 泰明, Morino Hiroaki; born 1934), known by his pseudonym as Taimei Morino (森野 泰明, Morino Taimei), is a…Hiroaki Morino (森野 泰明, Morino Hiroaki; born 1934), known by his pseudonym as Taimei Morino (森野 泰明, Morino Taimei), is a Japanese ceramist.
Osamu Suzuki (鈴木 治, Suzuki Osamu) (1926-2001) was a Japanese ceramicist and one of the co-founders of the artist group…Osamu Suzuki (鈴木 治, Suzuki Osamu) (1926-2001) was a Japanese ceramicist and one of the co-founders of the artist group Sōdeisha (eng. "Crawling through Mud Association"), a Japanese avant-garde ceramics movement that arose following the end of the Second World War and served as a counter to the traditional forms and styles in modern Japanese ceramics, such as Mingei. Working in both iron-rich stoneware and porcelain, Suzuki developed his style considerably over the course of his career, beginning with functional vessels in his early work, and spanning to fully sculptural works (which he called "clay images") in the latter half of his career. Suzuki has been described by The Japan Times as "one of Japan's most important ceramic artists of the 20th century."
Tatsuzō Shimaoka (島岡 達三, Shimaoka Tatsuzō; 27 October 1919 – 11 December 2007) was a Japanese mingei inspired potter…Tatsuzō Shimaoka (島岡 達三, Shimaoka Tatsuzō; 27 October 1919 – 11 December 2007) was a Japanese mingei inspired potter who studied under Shōji Hamada and later became the second Living National Treasure of Mashiko, Japan. He was best known for his unique Jōmon zogan style of pottery, and was a master of many slip decorating and firing techniques for pottery. Throughout his career, Shimaoka worked collaboratively with a group of workers, students, and apprentices from Japan and abroad. After supervising the loading of what would become his last noborigama firing in late 2007, Shimaoka collapsed, and died several weeks later in late 2007 from acute liver failure at Mashiko in Tochigi Prefecture.
Kazuo Yagi (八木 一夫, Yagi Kazuo, 1918–1979) was a Japanese potter and ceramic artist best known for spearheading the…Kazuo Yagi (八木 一夫, Yagi Kazuo, 1918–1979) was a Japanese potter and ceramic artist best known for spearheading the introduction of nonfunctional ceramic vessels to the Japanese pottery world. With an innovative ceramicist as his father, Yagi was sent to art school to study sculpture, instead of pottery. After graduating in 1937, he continued to train in the progressive circles, such as the National Ceramic Research Institute and the Japan Ceramic Sculpture Association. Following a short period of military service in 1939 and through the early postwar years, he was involved in a series of collectives that sought to transcend the traditional aesthetic values in not just ceramics but also in a range of visual media. It was not until 1948 that Yagi established his own ceramics collective, Sōdeisha, a group which rejected extant models of pottery and deliberately sought to blur the line between pottery and sculpture. Inspired in part by Isamu Noguchi's work in Japan in the early 1950s, which used ceramic materials to create modern abstract forms, Yagi and other members debuted so-called obuje-yaki ("kiln-fired objet "), or pottery with no functional purpose. The introduction of obuje-yaki was considered extremely radical at the time, because it questioned the very basis of ceramic objects. Yagi also introduced other experimental ceramic methods later in his career, such as burnishing his pottery objects black (so-called kokutō). Through his ceramic works, Yagi questioned the boundary between pottery and sculpture. However, his steadfast dedication to ceramics ultimately resulted in the nonfunctional ceramic vessel becoming an accepted type within Japanese pottery practice today. His legacy was felt through Sōdeisha, which continued even after his death, and his teaching at Kyoto City University of Arts.
Koyama Fujio (小山富士夫; March 24, 1900—October 7, 1975) was a scholar of Japanese pottery and porcelain and Chinese…Koyama Fujio (小山富士夫; March 24, 1900—October 7, 1975) was a scholar of Japanese pottery and porcelain and Chinese ceramics. He was also a potter in his own right. Amongst his publications are: "Two Thousand Years of Oriental Ceramics" (1961). "The Heritage of Japanese Ceramics" (1973), translated into English from the original publication in "Nihon Toji no Dento" in 1967 He developed the category of the Six Ancient Kilns of Japan. The Idemitsu Museum of Arts in Tokyo dedicated a retrospective "Tsuchi ni Asobu, To ni Manabu" (Play With Clay, Learn From Pots) in the spring of 2000.
Hajime Katō (加藤土師萌, Katō Hajime) (March 7, 1900 – September 25, 1968) was a Japanese potter. He was named a Living…Hajime Katō (加藤土師萌, Katō Hajime) (March 7, 1900 – September 25, 1968) was a Japanese potter. He was named a Living National Treasure in 1961.
Kaneshige Toyo (金重 陶陽) (from Okayama, Japan 1896–1967) was a potter in Imbe, Japan. He helped to establish the Japan…Kaneshige Toyo (金重 陶陽) (from Okayama, Japan 1896–1967) was a potter in Imbe, Japan. He helped to establish the Japan Kōgei Association in 1955, and was deemed a living national treasure in 1956 for his work in the Bizen style ceramics. He was a member of what is known as the "Momoyama revival movement" of the 1930s and is credited with having rediscovered the techniques used to produce the wabi teawares of the Azuchi-Momoyama period.
Shōji Hamada (濱田 庄司, Hamada Shōji; December 9, 1894 – January 5, 1978) was a Japanese potter. He had a significant…Shōji Hamada (濱田 庄司, Hamada Shōji; December 9, 1894 – January 5, 1978) was a Japanese potter. He had a significant influence on studio pottery of the twentieth century, and a major figure of the mingei (folk-art) movement, establishing the town of Mashiko as a pottery centre. In 1955 he was designated a "Living National Treasure".
Toyozo Arakawa (荒川 豊蔵, Arakawa Toyozō; March 21, 1894 - August 11, 1985) was a well-known Japanese ceramic potter. He…Toyozo Arakawa (荒川 豊蔵, Arakawa Toyozō; March 21, 1894 - August 11, 1985) was a well-known Japanese ceramic potter. He lived and worked in Mino, near Nagoya. He was given the title "Living National Treasure" in 1955. In 1930 he discovered shards at the site of the ruins of an ogama style kiln at Mutabora proving that that Shino and Oribe glazed work of the Momoyama and early Edo period in Japan had been manufactured in Mino rather than in the Seto area. In 1933 he built a kiln reproducing the original Mutabora kiln and rediscovered the techniques for manufacturing Shino glazes. He died in Tokyo, Japan in 1985. There is a translation of Arakawa's The Traditions and Techniques of Mino Pottery in Janet Barriskill's Visiting the Mino Kilns Wild Peony Press, Sydney, 1995. His work is kept in several museums, including the Mills College Art Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Portland Art Museum, the ASU Art Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, the Seattle Art Museum, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and the University of Michigan Museum of Art.
Kawai Kanjirō (河井 寬次郎; 24 August 1890, in Yasugi, Shimane – 18 November 1966) was a Japanese potter and a key figure in…Kawai Kanjirō (河井 寬次郎; 24 August 1890, in Yasugi, Shimane – 18 November 1966) was a Japanese potter and a key figure in mingei (Japanese folk art) and studio pottery movements, which included Bernard Leach, Shōji Hamada, Kenkichi Tomimoto, Shikō Munakata, Keisuke Serizawa, and Tatsuzō Shimaoka, among others.
Ito Sekisui V (伊藤赤水五代目; born 1941) is a Japanese potter. Ito Sekisui V is the 14th generation of his family to follow a…Ito Sekisui V (伊藤赤水五代目; born 1941) is a Japanese potter. Ito Sekisui V is the 14th generation of his family to follow a long tradition of ceramic work. He was given the birth name Yoichi Ito, the first character of his name ("yo" 窯) being the Japanese word for "kiln". After his father Ito Sekisui IV's death (when Yoichi was 19), he studied ceramics at Kyoto University. After graduating in 1966, he returned to his home town of Sado to continue the family business. His work was displayed at the Traditional Arts and Crafts Exhibition in 1972. In 1973, he won first prize at the second Japan Ceramic Art Exhibition. In the 1980s, Sekisui V started to create neriage works as well as his family's traditional mumyoi-yaki pieces and, in 2003, he was appointed a Living National Treasure of Japan for his work in these fields.