Arts
Ceramics
焼き物やきものyakimonoEarth, fire and a taste for the imperfect
Japan has one of the world's longest and most varied ceramic traditions, from Jōmon pottery over ten thousand years old to medieval stoneware kilns, tea bowls, and the porcelain of Arita. Dozens of regional wares are still made today, many in historic pottery towns open to visitors.
Pottery made by the hunter-gatherers of the Jōmon period is among the oldest in the world, and its cord-marked and flame-shaped vessels are admired as art. Later, potters from the Korean peninsula introduced the potter's wheel and high-fired grey Sue ware, and medieval kilns produced sturdy unglazed stoneware for storage jars and mortars.
From the sixteenth century the tea ceremony transformed Japanese ceramics. Tea masters prized rustic, irregular pieces, and potters responded with new styles such as Raku, Shino and Oribe. After Korean potters were brought to Kyushu following Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea in the 1590s, porcelain production began at Arita. Today Japan has more active ceramic centres than almost any other country, and leading potters can be recognised as Living National Treasures.
The Six Ancient Kilns
Six kiln areas that have produced ceramics continuously since the medieval period are known as the Six Ancient Kilns (Nihon rokkoyō). Their unglazed or naturally ash-glazed stoneware, fired for days in wood-burning kilns, is valued for the effects of flame and ash on the clay. They were jointly recognised as Japan Heritage in 2017.
- 瀬戸焼Seto-yaki
In Aichi Prefecture; so important that setomono became a general word for ceramics in eastern Japan.
- 常滑焼Tokoname-yaki
In Aichi, known for large jars and red-brown teapots (kyūsu).
- 越前焼Echizen-yaki
In Fukui Prefecture, robust storage jars and vessels.
- 信楽焼Shigaraki-yaki
In Shiga Prefecture, coarse clay with a warm orange colour; also known for its tanuki figures.
- 丹波焼Tanba-yaki
In Hyogo Prefecture, ash-glazed stoneware from climbing kilns.
- 備前焼Bizen-yaki
In Okayama Prefecture, unglazed, long-fired stoneware with rich fire marks.
Tea ware
The tea ceremony created a market for bowls, water jars and tea caddies, and potters working for tea masters developed wares whose asymmetry, textured glazes and signs of use embody the aesthetic of wabi. A traditional ranking among tea people, 'first Raku, second Hagi, third Karatsu', names the three most admired types of tea bowl.
- 楽焼Raku-yaki
Hand-formed, low-fired bowls first made in Kyoto by Chōjirō for Sen no Rikyū; the Raku family continues the line.
- 萩焼Hagi-yaki
Soft, pale wares from Hagi whose glaze changes colour with use.
- 唐津焼Karatsu-yaki
Stoneware from Karatsu in Saga, with simple iron-painted designs, rooted in Korean techniques.
- 志野・織部Shino, Oribe
Mino wares of the late sixteenth century from Gifu: thick white Shino glaze and bold green Oribe designs.
Porcelain
Porcelain production began in Arita in the early seventeenth century, traditionally dated to 1616, when the Korean potter Yi Sam-pyeong (Ri Sanpei) found porcelain stone at Izumiyama. Arita ware was shipped from the nearby port of Imari and became known in Europe by that name; from the 1650s the Dutch East India Company exported it in large quantities, and it influenced European porcelain, including Meissen.
Arita developed the refined overglaze enamels of the Kakiemon style, while the Nabeshima domain produced exquisite porcelain for gifts to the shogun. In Ishikawa Prefecture, Kutani ware became known for its bold overglaze colours.
- 有田焼・伊万里焼Arita-yaki, Imari-yaki
Japan's first porcelain, blue-and-white and enamelled, from Arita in Saga Prefecture.
- 柿右衛門Kakiemon
Style of delicate overglaze enamels on a milky white body, named after the Sakaida Kakiemon family.
- 九谷焼Kutani-yaki
Porcelain from Ishikawa Prefecture with rich overglaze greens, yellows, purples and reds.
- 清水焼Kiyomizu-yaki
Kyoto ceramics, both stoneware and porcelain, named after the slope leading to Kiyomizu-dera.
Folk crafts and regional wares
In the 1920s the thinker Yanagi Sōetsu, with the potters Hamada Shōji and Kawai Kanjirō, launched the mingei (folk craft) movement, which celebrated the anonymous beauty of everyday objects made by ordinary craftspeople. Hamada settled in Mashiko in Tochigi Prefecture, turning it into a centre of studio pottery, and the English potter Bernard Leach carried the movement's ideas to the West. The Japan Folk Crafts Museum in Tokyo was founded by Yanagi in 1936.
Many regions have their own folk wares, from the slip-decorated pottery of Onta and Koishiwara in northern Kyushu to Tsuboya ware in Naha, Okinawa.
Aesthetics and techniques
Japanese ceramics often value what other traditions would treat as flaws: uneven shapes, crawling glazes, ash deposits and kiln accidents. Firing in wood-burning climbing kilns (noborigama) or single-chamber tunnel kilns (anagama) can last days and produces unpredictable effects. The repair technique of kintsugi mends broken pieces with lacquer and gold, making the history of the object visible.
Kintsugi
金継ぎkintsugiRepairing ceramics with urushi lacquer dusted with gold.
Noborigama
登り窯noborigamaMulti-chamber climbing kiln built up a slope.
Anagama
穴窯anagamaSingle-chamber tunnel kiln, used since medieval times.
Toki-ichi
陶器市tōki-ichiPottery fairs held in towns such as Arita (during the early May holidays) and Mashiko (spring and autumn).
Timeline
c. 14,000 BCE onwards
Jōmon pottery is made, among the earliest in the world.
5th century
The potter's wheel and high-fired Sue ware arrive from the Korean peninsula.
12th–13th century
The medieval kilns later called the Six Ancient Kilns are established.
Late 16th century
Tea masters inspire Raku, Shino, Oribe and other tea wares; Korean potters settle in Kyushu.
1616
Porcelain stone is found at Izumiyama in Arita, traditionally marking the start of Japanese porcelain.
1650s onwards
The Dutch East India Company exports Arita porcelain to Europe.
1926
Yanagi Sōetsu, Hamada Shōji and Kawai Kanjirō launch the mingei movement.
2017
The Six Ancient Kilns are recognised together as Japan Heritage.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Arita and Imari ware?
They are largely the same porcelain. It was made in and around Arita and shipped from the port of Imari, so it became known abroad as Imari. Today Imari often refers to the export style with dense blue, red and gold decoration.
What are the Six Ancient Kilns?
Seto, Tokoname, Echizen, Shigaraki, Tanba and Bizen: six areas that have produced ceramics continuously since the medieval period.
What is kintsugi?
Kintsugi is the repair of broken ceramics with urushi lacquer, finished with gold or silver powder, so that the cracks become a visible part of the object's beauty.
Where can I try pottery in Japan?
Pottery towns such as Mashiko, Arita, Hagi, Shigaraki and Kyoto's Kiyomizu area have studios offering wheel-throwing or hand-building sessions; finished pieces are fired and often shipped later.
Related
Sources
- 1.日本民藝館 (opens in a new tab) — The Japan Folk Crafts Museum
- 2.日本遺産ポータルサイト (opens in a new tab) — 文化庁 (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- 3.東京国立博物館 (opens in a new tab) — Tokyo National Museum