Japanese pottery and porcelain

Seizan kiln 誠山窯

The Seizan kiln was founded by Kataoka Makoto in 1889 and is recognized by bonsai masters as a great potter. Seizan since its inception has worked hard to faithfully reproduce the old Kowatari pots from China. In order to learn about the Kowatari method, Kataoka Makoto studied in China for many years and was the designer of many of his own creations. Currently the oven is run by his son Kataoka Katsushi or better known as Reiho. From a very young age he learned by observing his father’s way of making pots and his mission is to continue the will (more…)

Anto pottery 安東焼

the middle of the Edo periodIn the middle of the Edo period, a wealthy merchant from Kuwana, Nunami Rosan, started Banko ware (old Banko) in Obuke village, Asaaki-gun (present-day Komukai, Asahi-machi, Mie-gun). Somewhat later, during the Kanpo period (1741-1744), the Todo clan invited an apprentice of Rozan, Zuiga, to open a kiln in Anto village (near present-day Nagaoka-machi, Tsu City), west of Tsu Castle, and began to produce tea ceremony pottery. The works were called Anto-yaki, after the name of the kiln, and were stamped with the kiln mark “Anto”. At the time, Zuiga, the founder of Ando ware, was (more…)

Daishoji Imari 大聖寺伊万里

It was painted in the town of Daishoji, which existed in the center of present-day Kaga City, Ishikawa Prefecture until the early Showa period. From the early Meiji period to the Showa period, it was produced in large quantities in the area of the former Daishoji domain in response to orders from Japan and overseas.Towards the end of the Edo period, the Daishoji clan, which owned the Daishoji area in Enuma county, invited a potter from Kyoto, Eiraku Wazen, for industrial promotion, which is said to be the beginning of Daishoji ware. In the Meiji era, when the clan lost (more…)

Miyama pottery 深山焼

In Miyama, Shirataka Town, Yamagata Prefecture, there are the remains of a Miyama-yaki kiln that operated in the early 19th century. Miyama-yaki is famous as a special kiln that fired rare products for the Yonezawa clan.In the 1960s, Umemura Masayoshi, who was a teacher at the school, started researching ceramic shards with the aim of reviving Miyama-yaki.He also visited and learned from Shibata, the last inheritor of the techniques of the Narushima kiln, the modern kiln industry in Okiya to which Miyama-yaki belongs, and succeeded in producing pottery using glaze and clay collected from the former raw material production area, (more…)

Awata pottery 粟田焼

Awata ware is a type of pottery produced in the Rakuto Awata area, which is located in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture. It was originally called Awataguchi ware, but since they expanded and established potteries in the entire area of Awata, the name has been changed to Awata ware.It is said that Awata ware originated in 1624 when Sanmojiya Kyuemon, a potter who lived in Imamichi Town, Keage, Sanjo, made rust-painted and blue-and-white pottery using Yugyo clay and Okazaki clay. Yugyo clay was produced in Higashiyama Gojo, Higashiyama Ward, and Okazaki clay was produced in Tenno Town, Okazaki, Sakyo Ward, and (more…)

Ichinose pottery 一の瀬焼

Ichinose ware is pottery made in Ukiha Town, Ukiha City, Fukuoka Prefecture. It is said that Ichinose ware originated about 400 years ago, when the ruins of Monchusho Munekage’s Ichinose mansion were discovered, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi invited potters and established a kiln during the Imjin War.In the early modern period, it became an official kiln of the Kurume Domain, but during the Meiji Restoration, it temporarily closed. It was restored in 1959, and they currently have six potteries. (more…)

Hoshino pottery 星野焼

Hoshino ware is pottery made in Hoshino Village, Yame City, Fukuoka Prefecture. Since Yame tea is produced in that area, Hoshino ware created many fine tea jars and tea utensils in the Edo period as the official kiln of the Kurume Domain.They made reddish-brown “Sunset ware” using local mud that had high iron content.However, sticky mud that has high iron content is a difficult substance to manipulate, and especially requires high expertise to deal with. Due to this, the kiln shut down in 1894, and faded away for a time. However, in 1969, Yamamoto Genta restored Hoshino ware, and Maruta (more…)

Akashi pottery 明石焼

Akashi ware is pottery and porcelain mainly made in Akashi City, Hyogo Prefecture. Somewhere between 1615–1624, the official kiln of Ogasawara Tadamasa, the lord of the Akashi Castle, was established. Toda Oribenosuke made pottery in this kiln. After that, the kiln was moved to Nakataniyama, Akashi. This is said to be the origin of Akashi ware.As the official kiln of the Akashi Domain, they have been making a lot of colored plates and bowls, which were greatly inspired by Mishima ware and colored pottery styles, such as old Kiyomizu and Kyo ware styles, since the mid-Edo period.They were at the (more…)

Minato pottery 湊焼

Minato ware is believed to have originated when Doraku, the younger brother of Donyu, established a kiln in Minato, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, between 1648–1652 in the late 17th century. The Doraku kiln was later handed down to the Yamamoto kiln.Around the same time, a potter from Omura, Kyoto by the name of Ueda Kichiemon immigrated to Minato Village, Sakai. He learned Doraku kiln’s techniques of making and firing pottery, and started making pottery in Sakai. The Doraku kiln later became a Kichiemon kiln. By the time of the fifth-generation head, the Ueda Kichiemon kiln had succeeded in producing imitations (more…)

Manoyama pottery 眞野山焼

Manoyama ware is pottery made in Mano Town, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture. Sasaki Shodo, who became a living treasure for using the wax-mold casting technique, established Niigata Toen, a kiln that produced Koshiji ware, in 1938 in Niigata. In 1944, he evacuated to Sado to avoid the ravages of war. In 1947, he established the Manoyama ware kiln in Mano town. (more…)

Fujimi pottery 不二見焼

Fujimi ware is pottery made in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture. It originated in 1879, when the founder, Murase Hachiroemon (Biko, Fuji Sanjin), who was also the feudal retainer of the Owari Domain, established a kiln with his son, Ryokichi, and four other craftsmen.Fujimi ware was initially made with a type of potter’s clay called Maezu clay, which was produced from Oike (Kikugaike). They specialized in woven-pattern pottery. They made tea utensils and table ware, as well as porcelain items. However, they were struggling because their sales were not increasing.The fourth-generation head (the son of the second-generation head) looked into imitating (more…)

Honma pottery 本間焼

Honma ware is pottery made in Sakata City, Yamagata Prefecture. In 1960, in the era of Rikyu, Honma Yusuke, director of the Honma Museum at the time, was impressed by the high quality of Chojiro’s tea bowls. With guidance from Asano Akira and Miura Koheiji from the Tokyo University of the Arts, they were able to establish a small kiln in the corner of the garden, and started making raku ware as oniwa ware. This is how Honma ware originated.At the time, Ikeda Taisuke, who made pottery alongside Director Yusuke, was exposed to the masterpieces displayed in the Honma Museum, (more…)

Tomida pottery 富田焼

Tomida ware is pottery made in Okawa Town, Sanuki City, Kagawa Prefecture. The Tomida area in Okawa Town has been known as a pottery village since the Edo period.In the Edo period, Rihei ware, Gennai ware, Tomida ware, Yashima ware, and Sangama kiln were earning reputation as Sanuki okuni ware, but a lot of their potter’s clay was from Tomida, Okawa Town.In 1718, The fourth-generation Rihei, of Rihei ware, established a kiln in Tomida, and created beautiful colored pottery, which has become a signature of Tomida. In the Tenmei and Kansei periods, Hiraga Gennai’s best apprentice, Akamatsu Shozan, succeeded the (more…)

Koto porcelain 湖東焼

Koto ware is porcelain made in Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture. The origin of its name comes from the name of an area located on the east coast of Lake Biwa called Koto.It is believed that it originated in Honryo, Hakone Domain (currently Hikone City), in the Bunsei era of the mid-Edo period, when Kinuya Hanbei invited a potter from Arita, who made Imari ware. Koto ware developed under the Feudal Ii Domain. However, when the feudal lord, Ii Naosuke, who was also chief minister of the shogunate, was assassinated, the workers at the pottery dispersed, and their business instantly declined. (more…)

Kirigome pottery 切込焼

Kirigome ware is pottery made in Kami Town, Kami District, Miyagi Prefecture. There are not many details about its foundation. Some theories suggest that it was founded by Date Masamune, and others suggest third-generation Kinmune.In the Edo period, it flourished as the official kiln of the Date clan, and became very popular. At that time, in addition to producing high-grade blue-and-white porcelain, they also produced a lot of everyday items for the general public.When the domain’s support ceased in the Meiji period, their business greatly declined, and eventually, the kiln was closed.In 1990, Miyazaki Town (currently Kami Town) started making (more…)

Tajima pottery 但馬焼

Tajima ware is pottery made in Kinosaki Town, Toyooka City, Hyogo Prefecture. It originated in 1976, when Yamane Tsuyoshi established the Sasaura kiln in Sasaura, Kinosaki Town. Sasaura kiln was a cave kiln, which is a style of kilns older than climbing kilns. Tajima ware was named by the mayor of Kinosaki Town at that time with the hope that “It puts down roots in this town.” (more…)

Shinshu pottery 真朱焼

Shinshu ware is pottery that has been passed down in Kamagaya City, Chiba Prefecture. It has been designated as the prefecture’s Traditional Craft. Shinshu ware originated in the Taisho period (around 1918?), by a potter called Hamada Keizan in Onigoe, Ishikawa City. He was inspired by old Chinese pottery called Keiketsu ware.Mitsuhashi Eisaku (1929-2008), the second generation of Shinshu Kiln. He succeeded Hamada Keizan and developed Shinshu ware, but the kiln was closed due to the lack of a successor after the death of Mitsuhashi Eisaku.After the death of Eisaku Mitsuhashi, the kiln was closed due to the lack of (more…)

Tsugaru pottery 津軽焼

Tsugaru ware is pottery made in Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture. Between 1688–1703, Tsugaru Nobumasa, the fourth feudal lord of the Tsugaru Domain, wanted the Hirosaki Domain to reach pottery and porcelain self-sufficiency, so he invited Hirashimizu Sanemon from Edo. To test if pottery and porcelain can be produced in Tsugaru, they had Setosuke, a renowned master craftsman, make porcelain using the clay that Sanemon had gathered. They concluded from the results that it was perfectly possible to produce pottery and porcelain. They invited the tea pot craftsman, Kyubei, and others from Edo and established kilns in Teramachi and Shimizu Village. (more…)

Shizuhata pottery 賤機焼

Shizuhata ware is pottery made in Yanagi Town, Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture. It was founded by Ota Shichiroemon at the foot of Mt. Shizuhata in the Edo period.Their kiln was authorized as the official kiln of the Tokugawa clan and granted the name Shizuhata ware by Tokugawa Ieyasu. They flourished for hundreds of years, but by the end of the Bunsei era, the kiln was washed away by the Abe river flood, and they inevitably continued to decline.With the start of the Meiji period, the kiln was restored by Ota Manjiro, but it did not regain its initial prosperity. The (more…)

Ako-Unka pottery 赤穂雲火焼

Ako Unka ware is pottery made in Misaki, Ako City, Hyogo Prefecture. Ako Unka ware is traditional Ako City pottery that originated in the late Edo period, but faded in the late Meiji period. It was founded by a foundry craftsman from Ako by the name of Oshima Kokoku (1821–1904). It is believed that Ako Unka ware originated when Sakune Benjiro stayed in Ako in 1848 for a year, learning pottery techniques before founding Ako Unka ware. Sakune was a potter from Imado ware, which was believed to have been made in the Asakusa area in Tokyo. momoi-museum.com桃井ミュージアム : 無二の至宝 (more…)