Keiko Ohnuma on sun 17 mar 96
I am brand new to ceramics and completely obsessed. I have plans to be in
Japan this summer for about a month and wondered if anyone could suggest
interesting/innovative ceramic artists (on Honshu, the main island) who
might be willing to let a beginner watch them work. Schools would also be
helpful!
Email kohnuma@hawaii.edu.
Lee Jaffe on mon 18 mar 96
I've been to Japan three times since 1990 to see pottery and sometimes to
see potters. I can't really recommend potters with whom you can visit,
but I can make some useful suggestions.
No. 1 is read _The Road Through Miyama_. Don't get your hopes up about
having such an experience unless someone helps you find an apprenticeship,
but I found it to be a very good description of rural life in Japan, from
the eyes of a Westerner, and a pretty good description of a life in clay in
Japan.
No. 2, find a copy of Earth'n'Fire. It is out of print, but worthwhile
hunting down. It gives info about specific potters you can visit.
No. 3. Learn enough Japanese to handle formal greetings. It helps over
the initial contact. A decent phrasebook/dictionary won't hurt either.
For my money, Berlitz's _Japanese for Travellers_ is the best.
No. 4. Buy a copy of _Gateway to Japan_, by far the best guidebook around.
Leave something else behind if the weight and size bother you. Believe in
it religiously.
#5. The Japanese National Tourist Org. puts out a good flyer about pottery
communities. Once there, you can use their offices in Tokyo and Kyoto to
arrange travel.
From my direct experience:
a. I found Shigaraki to be very accessible for pottery. A longish
day-trip from Kyoto or Osaka, it features several really nice ceramic
museums, lots of shops, and some opportunities for seeing potters. The
Ceramic Cultural Center, just outside of town, includes a school and they
were pretty free with letting us look around.
b. Bizen is another good pottery town. Lots of shops. One very
good museum and some chances to see potters at work. Go to Okayama - a
fairly charming modern Japanese city, esp. along the canal - and then take
a local train to Bizen.
c. Mashiko is quite famous because of Hamada Shoji and there is
quite a lot of focus on pottery. I was able to strike up at least one
conversation with a potter which lead to a visit to the studio.
#6. Almost any community has some pottery. We saw kilns indicated on a
Japanese version of a map at the tourist center in Nara, but not shown on
the English version. Asking one of the guides, he called a potter to
arrange a visit and gave us directions to get there. It turned out to be a
wonderful, though strange, afternoon.
#7. Do other things. Pottery doesn't exist in a vacuum in Japan. If you
are invited to a Tea Ceremony, you will see very beautiful ceramics in the
environment in which they were meant to be seen and handled. Some of the
most famous pottery are in the collections of shrines and temples. Any
descent restaurant will serve you on a surprisingly wide range of
interesting wares. A casual invitation may lead to some interesting
pottery. The really great stuff happens by accident.
#8. Go to Kyoto. If nothing else, the two big flea markets at the end
each month are good places to go pottery hunting. And some of the most
wonderful pottery galleries can be found there. There are also museums for
Kawai and Raku. And it is the best city in the world.
#9. Collect names. Bring business cards and take business cards. Keep a
journal and record names of everyone you talk to.
#10. Take about 100 times the number of photos you would normally take.
-- Lee Jaffe, Santa Cruz
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>I am brand new to ceramics and completely obsessed. I have plans to be in
>Japan this summer for about a month and wondered if anyone could suggest
>interesting/innovative ceramic artists (on Honshu, the main island) who
>might be willing to let a beginner watch them work. Schools would also be
>helpful!
>
>Email kohnuma@hawaii.edu.
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