Shozo Michikawa: Ceramic Art

Torsion and tension are characteristic of the vessels created by the exceptional Japanese ceramicist Shozo Michikawa (b. 1953), whose works are reminiscent of rock strata and lava flows. Michikawa is known for his unique technique, for turning edgy, dynamic sculptures on the potter’s wheel. First he cuts and scores a solid block of clay before he carves out the interior hollow through pressing and turning with a rod and his hands. Natural-looking surfaces emerge, just as geological forces formed the earth’s surface – an irrepressible energy from the inside out.

Shozo Michikawa’s work is highly sought after throughout the world. The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg (DE), LACMA Los Angeles County Museum of Art (US), Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (GB), National Museum of Wales in Cardiff (GB), Philadelphia Museum of Art (US), Qinglingsi Temple in Xi’an (CN) and Shimada City Museum (JP) are among the institutions that have acquired his work.

Text in English.
 

About the author

Dr Clare Pollard is curatorof Japanese art at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford (UK). Her main area of research is the decorative arts of the Meiji era, in particular the work of the potter Miyagawa Kozan.

Dr Nora von Achenbach works as an academic associate and curator for various exhibition projects on Chinese and Japanese arts. Since 2000 she has headed the East Asian and Islamic Department at the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg (DE).