Ceramics, Their Creators, and Japan in Their Most Intimate Aspects

Mexico marks a form of maiden voyage, a baptism of fire for these ceramics and all their components. Assembled in the V.V. Sorry exhibition space by curator Kimberly Wu, six Japanese artists came together as part of the exhibition Familiar Soil. However, these talented individuals are united by more than their nationality or medium of choice.

The use of local raw materials and their transformation close to their source is now demanded by a growing number of players in sustainable agriculture that respects the environment. This sense of rigour can also be transferred to other areas of activity, as is the case for ceramicists Akihiro Nikaido, Hitoshi Morimoto, Takayuki Watanabe, Takeshi Oomura, Tanaka Shigeo, and Yoko Ozawa.

Mixing the practical with pleasure

In Mexico, a country particularly appreciative of artisanal craftsmanship, vases, tea services, bowls, and dishes are arranged in an understated setting, or rather exhibited. When it comes to art objects and arts and crafts, the boundary between the useful and the frivolous and decorative is questioned. In what sense is this categorisation relevant or indeed useful? The pieces brought together by Kimberly Wu examine our relationship to the matter that surrounds us, to the routes we travel every day, and to what this set of routines, collections, and patience creates.

More specifically, as the curator explains, ‘the work is made from clay dug from nearby land by the artists themselves, and tends not to be overtly glazed over before being fired with wood, including in anagama kilns. Any colour appearing on the surface is derived from natural properties and minerals in the soil which are revealed in the firing process.’

The six artists’ practices and creative offerings are different, but the understanding of the creation process gives rise to a sense of unity. Each personal touch adds up to offer the public a patchwork of ways in which the group of artists consider their relationship with their environment, in a subtly personal manner. ‘Everything, including me, the soil, and what I have made, influences the way energy is expressed, and this is the expression of my life as a work.’

Familiar Soil: Japanese Wood-Fired Ceramics, an exhibition at V.V Sorry, Mexico, curated by Kimberly Wu, was held from 21 May until 20 June 2021.