A cluster of succulent flowers blossom among the vibrant leaves of the loquat tree on this unusually shaped vessel by Sueoka Nobuhiko enclosed in the original signed wooden box. It is 28 cm wide, 36 cm tall and in excellent condition.
Sueoka Nobuhiko was born in Fukuoka on Japans Main Sothern Island in 1948, and apprenticed under future Living National Treasure Fujimoto Yoshimichi in 1973...

Marbled clay in lively blends colors on those beautiful sake cups by Wakao Kei enclosed in their original signed wooden boxes, dating to 2022.
Size,(Left) D 6.7 cm H 6.5 cm (inches)
Size,(Middle) D 6.9 cm H 6.6 cm (inches)
Size,(Right) D 6.8 cm H 6.7 cm (inches)
Condition, Excellent
Wakao Kei was born in Gifu in 1967 ,the first son of the legendary artist Wakao Toshisada ...

A black cloak is draped from the shoulders of this mysterious character lurking in the shadows of the tea room by legendary potter Yamada Kazu enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Seto-guro Hanaire.
Size, D 10.2 cm H 25.8 cm
Condition, Excellent
Kazu was born in Tokoname cityin 1954, one of Japans ancient kiln areas, into a line of potters...

Thick white feldspathic glaze tinged with flickers of color covers this sake flask by Kato Kozo enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Shino Tokkuri. It is 13.3 cm (just over 5 inches) tall and in excellent condition.
Kato Kozo was born in 1935, and studied under the Mino Legend and Designated Living National Treasure Arakawa Toyozo...

Beware, in this artists world the walls have ears and your sake cup is staring back at you. A striking work by Mizumoto Kayoko enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Kujira Guinomi. As if the unblinking green eye were not enough, a silver thorn bursts from the surface on one side (or is it a devils horn, or Vikings come to call?). Sure to inspire conversation during a round of sake, the playful cup is 5.5 cm tall and in excellent condition...

Perhaps because of its proximity (or lack thereof) to central Japan, the beautiful lacquer wares of Akita may be lesser known than other regions. Here is an exquisite sake cup and katakuchi serer of turned wood covered in multiple layers of soft, black lacquer by Sato Fumiyuki of the Kawatsura lacquer tradition. A belt of gilded binding wrapping the body is the only decoration...

A quintessential work showing the decorative aesthetic of Ichino Masahiko enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Senmon Tokkuri. It is 13.3 cm (just over 5 inches) tall and in excellent condition.
The youngest winner ever at the 13th National Ceramic Exhibition (Nihon Togeiten), Ichino Hiroyuki is a powerhouse in Tamba, bringing that long forgotten corner of Japan’s ceramic realm back into the limelight...

A spectacular tea bowl by Kato Yasukage XIV enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Oribe Chawan and signed 14th Yasukage. The smoothly undulating rim floats above the faceted sides, like acloud over the precipitous crags of Gifu prefecture, home of Oribe-ware. To accentuate the random vein which carries the lifeblood of Japanese pottery, fortuitous flashes of yellow and blue with rich irons flare on the surface like acts of nature...

A morphic vessel of rough outer form like a fossilized egg or bowl of coral covered from the rim within by slick blue, a quintessential work by Tanoue Shinya enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Kara-wan Ao (Empty Shell, Blue). It has a wide, rounded form which is surprisisngly pleasant to hold, and the smooth blue decorating the rim is pleasing to the lips. The shape allows for a very stable silhouette, which seems to anchor itself to whatever surface it rests upon...

A beautiful pure white porcelain tea bowl by Niisato Akio enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Hikari Wan . The technique called Hikari ( Light),through small “windows” like a fireflies, the expression of the vessel changes under lights at each moment and it is wonderful. Perfect for use in the Japanese Tea Ceremony in the summer...

A beautiful hanging vase covered with translucent green by Yamaguchi Makoto enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Oribe Kake-hanaire.
Size, D 8.9 cm H 19.9 cm
Condition, Excellent
A rising star in the pottery world, Yamaguchi Makoto was born in Seto, Aichi prefecture in 1978. In 2000 he was apprenticed to Hiroshige Kato (Kasen Toen)...

Faint crackling permeates the vibrant green glaze on this sake flask by Living National Treasure Nakajima Hiroshi enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled simply Tokkuri. It is 12.5 cm tall, and in excellent condition.
Nakajima Hiroshi (1941-2018) was born in Hiroshima, and established himself as an independent potter Yano, Saga Prefecture in 1969, choosing to specialize in the challenging field of Celadon ware...

An example of some of the finest porcelain modern Japan has to offer. According to the Wakao Kei, the artist who crafted this piece, it took him years of trial and error to perfect these stunning translucent glazes and associated techniques such as getting the right flowing consistency and pooling effect around the base...

Enigmatic natural forms seem fossilized on the white surface of this rare guinomi by female pottery star Hattori Makiko enclosed in a black lidded wooden box signed and dated inside Heisei 27 (2015) and titled simply Shuki. It is 7.5 cm (3 inches) diameter and in excellent condition. This was from way back when we could acquire works by her. Those days are long gone, and this is the last of its kind.
Hattori Makiko was born in Aichi prefecture in 1984. She graduated the Aichi Prefectur...

Delicate pink and blue fan-shapes like the scales on some iridescent tropical fish or feathers on an exotic bird rise in an overlapping pattern to form this open flower receptacle by Kusaba Yuji enclosed in the original signed wooden box. Neriage is well known in Northern Japan thanks to living National Teasure Matsui Kosei who worked in colored clay, however it is unheard of in Southern Japan, and in this case, made of colored porcelain. The vessel is 17 cm (6-1/4 inches) diameter, 20.5 cm (8...

Blue, yellow, white, red and gold decorated the green "reptilian skin" Oribe glazed body of this Contemporary sake set by Ujiie Kodai , enclosed in their original signed wooden boxes, dating to 2022.This is a handful, great tactile qualities and entrancing to look at.
Size, Tokkuri D 11.4 cm H 21.1 cm
Size, Guinomi D 8.1 cm H 7.1 cm
Condition, Excellent
Ujiie Kodai, a rising star in the word of pottery, was born in Sendai in 1990. His works have been ...

Tatsuzo Shimaoka (1919-2007) Square Bottle Vase with iconic Aka-e Designs

With tall rectangular sides, decorated with impressed rope patterns inlaid in slip and with Aka-e designs.
It is rare to see Shimaoka bottle with such design which he mainly applied for tea ware.

Tatsuzo Shimaoka was a Japanese mingei 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 ...

For Celadon aficionado Kato Tsubusa is like the jewel in the crown, a centerpiece so unusual and outstanding, and this vase is a particularly rare gem, enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled understatedly Hanaire.
Size, D 21.7 cm H 36.7 cm
Condition, Excellent
Kato Tsubusa was born in the home of Shino, Tajimi city. However after working some in pottery, he moved on to white porcelain, a leap from which he has never looked back. He has been displayed at t...

Kenji Funaki (b. 1927) White Glaze Chawan (tea bowl) Studio Pottery
Elegant shape in the style of fine Joseon dynasty bowls covered with white glaze.

Kenji Funaki is known for his participation in the Mingei Movement led by Yanagi Soetsu and Kawai Kanjiro.
He studied under Hamada Shoji and Bernard Leach. Kenji Funaki received numerous awards including Kokuga Association Award, Japan Folk Crafts Museum Award, Japan Ceramics Society Award. He held many solo exhibitions at ...

This vivid Mino Iga tea bowl is made by renowned Japanese ceramist Yaemon Kato (b.1942)
The mark of the potter is carved near the foot ring.

Yaemon Kato, a third son of Juemon Kato (1894-1974), continued his father's efforts to revive and restore Mino ceramic art working on Shino, Kiseto, Oribe, Mino Iga, etc.

Size
Height 8 cm
Width 11.5 cm

In excellent condition with original box (no cord) and leaflet.

Satoru Omae (b. 1972) Black and White Guinomi (sake cup) in the style of legendary "Fuji San" Bowl

Excellent sake ware version of "Fuji San" bowl, one of the most famous chawan of all times made by Honami Koetsu in Momoyama Period (1568-1600) which is currently located in Sanritsu Hattori Museum.

Oomae Satoru
1972 Born in Osaka
1991 Began making ceramics in Kobe
1994 Began collecting clay and firing in high-fired unglazed Nanban style
1999 First solo e...

A virtual textbook on Yohen firing effects on this fantastic sculptured vase by the outlandish Yoshitaka Hasu enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Yohen Kaki. A frenzied stack of rugged corners like the fallen away sides of a mountain revealing the earth’s structure beneath a layer of green. It is likely Hasu san is inspired by the brawny, rain drenched and forested mountains surrounding the town of Iga, where the Mountains formed a natural line of defense for the secret clans of...

A gorgeous Mimitsuki handled vase with flaring rim covered in in running ash glaze and encrustations of dark embers by Tanimoto Yo enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Iga Hana-ire. It is 26 cm (10-1/4 inches) tall and in excellent condition. This is a superb example of the traditional Momoyama aesthetic.
Born in 1958 the son of Iga potter Tanimoto Kosei, Yo was raised among the kilns and has always had his hands in clay. He first began exhibiting in 1982, and in 1984 move...

A superb large sake cup by Kuwata Takuro enclosed in the original signed wooden box. Dark and murky ash gray covered in soft dripping silver glaze. It has Tomo everything, Artists history, wrapping cloth, with his fingerprint all over the signed box circa 2018.
Size, D 8.1 cm H 7.5 cm
Condition, Excellent
Takuro was born in 1981 in Hiroshima. He graduated from the Department of Fine Arts, at Kyoto Saga University in 2001, and started studying under Susumu Zaima in 2002...

A pair of skull cups in pink and silver with gold by rising star Ichikawa Toru enclosed in the original signed wood box titled Memento Mori(Don`t Forget About Death) 2022. This artist really takes things to the extreme and challenging.
Size, D 13.5 cm H 6.4 cm
Condition, Excellent
Ichikawa Toru was born in Tokyo in 1973. he was apprenticed to the Bizen master Kakurezaki Ryuichi for five years before establishing his own kiln in 2015 in Okayama. He has since developed qui...

Strikingly bold patterns revealed through curtains of copper green play across the surface of this dramatic work by Ikeda Shogo enclosed in the original signed wooden box. Mt. Fuji, Pine Trees, Trucks, and Birds flying all over, a smorgasbord of Japanese iconography painted and carved into the gritty clay.
Size, D 29.6 cm H 6.8 cm
Condition, Excellent
Born in Kagoshima, the southern extreme of the Japanese main islands in 1976, Shogo would have been inundated wi...

The mark of the potter is carved on the bottom.

Born in Shigaraki in 1913, Tani Seiuemon was the key person to revive old Ko-Shigaraki and Ko-Iga styles with natural ash glaze effects.
Tani Seiuemon works are exhibited in British museum and Cleveland Museum of Art.
Currently, his son Tani Q operates the family kiln in Shigarakicho.

Size
3.3in. (8.5cm.) high;
4.68in. (12cm.) diameter;

Condition
Unused.
Supplied with original wooden bo...

This rare little gem is made by Morihiro Hosokawa (b. 1938) who served as the prime minister of Japan from 1993 to 1994.

He is also the head of the Kumamoto-Hosokawa clan, one of the noble families of Japan.
The clan was descended from the Seiwa Genji, a branch of the Minamoto clan, and ultimately from Emperor Seiwa (850 – 881) himself.
Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543–1616), founder of the Tokugawa shogunate, also claimed descent from this lineage.

Morihiro Hosokawa s...

Bizen ware Sake set of Tokkuri and Guinomi made by Bizen master Joji Yamashita (b. 1947) The mark of the artist is carved on the base.

Joji Yamashita was born in Tokyo in 1947. He moved to Canada in 1967 where he graduated from Vancouver Art School.
After returning to Japan in 1970, he studied Bizen ware under Isezaki Jun and established his own kiln in 1978.

Joji Yamashita has been awarded with numerous prizes from the Japan Traditional Craft Exhibition, the Japa...

A fantastic black sculptural Kogo very much in the style of the highly sought Bizen master Kakurezaki Ryuichi enclosed in the original signed wooden box. A kogo is a box used to contain incense.
Size, D 7.6 cm H 14.8 cm
Condition, Excellent
Kakurezaki Ryuichi is one of the most well known of Bizen potters, he is interestingly originally not from Bizen but far off Nagasaki, which seems to have gifted him with the ability to see the clays potential beyond conventiona...

A fabulous textured faceted bottle shaped vase by Sakai Hiroshi enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Ai-ji Shino Ichirin Sashi (Blue Shino Single Flower Vase). It is 16.5 cm (6-1/2 inches) tall, 11.5 cm (5 inches) diameter and in excellent condition.
Sakai Hiroshi was born in Toki City in central Mino country in 1960. He graduated the Nagoya Institute of Technology in 1983, after which he spent two years at the Tajimi City Ceramic Research Facility before apprenticing under...

Living National Treasure Fujiwara Kei (1899-1983) Bizen ware Hidasuki Chawan for Tea Ceremony.
The mark of the potter is carved on the bottom.

Hidasuki or fire sleeve-cording technique results when the ceramic items are wrapped in rice straw and then it burns in the kiln with beautiful red markings left on the surface.

Kei Fujiwara has become the second Bizen Living National Treasure in 1970.

Bizen pottery was originally produced in Imbe village of Bizen pro...

Here is a masterpiece by Wakao Toshisada, one of the great artists of the post-war era who helped to revive the Shino tradition (now one of the most popular Japanese forms) from extinction. An early masterpiece by the artist showing his abilities from inception, this bowl was selected for the cover of the exhibition invitation card in 1973 (card included). It is 14 cm (5-1/2 inches) diameter, 9 cm (3-1/2 inches) tall and in excellent condition.
Wakao Toshisada was born in Tajimi, Gifu ...

Very fine Iga mimitsuki style hanaire by Furutani Michio with some vivid bidoro ash across the surface and rather expressive pottery marks made while the clay was still wet. I think it goes without saying that Furutani Michio was one of the most important anagama potters of the 20th century specializing in Iga and Shigaraki pottery. If you do a web search there is quite a bit of information about his life and work.

This vase measures approximately 25 x 12cm and is in great original conditi...

Today I would like to introduce another talented potter living outside of the traditional potting centers. This is a beautiful Nezumi Shino (Gray Shino) chawan by Sagae Eimei, and comes enclosed in the original signed wooden box. This has an immediacy which speaks of our era, yet is based firmly in the pottery of the Momoyama period. It is 12.5 cm (5 inches) diameter, 9.5 cm (3 inches) tall and in excellent condition.
Sagae Eimei was born in Yamagata prefecture in 1949. Upon graduatio...

A superbly crafted trumpeting form by Nakamura Kohei enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Ido Chawan. The bowl reflects the aesthetics of those imported Korean wares preferred by Sen-no-Rikyu in the Momoyama era. It has a bold, strong foot which rests perfectly on the table, both grounding the bowl and yet allowing it a sense of flight, as if the moment will soon be gone (and it will indeed!).
Size, D 15.8 cm H 10.3 cm
Condition, Excellent
Kohei was bor...