Hayashi Yasuo 林康夫 Japanese, b. 1928

We are deeply honored to present the solo exhibition of the modern ceramic master Hayashi Yasuo (b. 1928), one of the most pivotal figures of the first post-war generation that shaped contemporary Japanese ceramics. This exhibition brings together an intimate selection of works spanning from 1969 to the present, tracing key moments across an extraordinary artistic practice that has extended over eight decades.

Born in Kyoto in 1928, Hayashi Yasuo came of age during a period of profound upheaval. Drafted as a kamikaze pilot during World War II, he survived only due to the sudden end of the war, an experience that would leave a deep psychological imprint on his life and work. In the immediate post-war years, within Kyoto’s cultural circles, Hayashi associated with leading figures of the time, including Noguchi Isamu (1904–1988), and exhibited alongside Noguchi in Paris in 1947 while still very young.

That same year, Hayashi became a founding member of Shikō-kai, Kyoto’s first avant-garde sculptural ceramic movement. In 1948, the group held the earliest exhibition of ceramic objets, known as obuje-yaki, kiln-fired objects that consciously subverted Japan’s long tradition of vessel-based ceramics.

Works from Hayashi’s early period are featured in this exhibition, alongside rare examples from the 1960s and 1970s. After encountering the work of Surrealist Max Ernst at the home of potter Uno Sango, Hayashi explored biomorphic forms characterized by sensuous contours and richly red surfaces.

Also included are works from his ongoing “Memories of a House” series. During his wartime night training flights over Kyoto from which he was extremely lucky to survive, Hayashi observed the city as a dense expanse of kyōmachiya rooftops stretching across the darkness below. Seen from the air, familiar domestic forms became distorted by distance, speed, and weather, merging with an acute awareness of mortality. These psychologically charged impressions have remained a persistent theme throughout his career, through which Hayashi continues to reflect on the fragility of life.

Now at 97, Hayashi finds renewed expression in a new group of objets created in remembrance of the victims of, and those still affected by, the March 2011 Tōhoku tsunami, nearly fifteen years on. These series, titled “Scenes of Namie Town,” reaffirm his enduring belief in art as a vessel for humanity, memory, and history.

In the landscape of mid-20th century Japan, two significant sculptural ceramic movements, Sodeisha and Shikokai, emerged concurrently during the post-war period. Dai Ichi Arts is thrilled to present a landmark exhibition this March that illuminates the richness of these historical movements, offering a distinctive lens through which to explore "Post-war" ceramics from Japan.

This exhibition unveils a curated collection of masterpieces by renowned artists integral to the Shikokai and Sodeisha canon in Japanese ceramic art history. Among the luminaries featured are Hayashi Yasuo, Suzuki Osamu, Kumakura Junkichi, Yagi Kazuo, Yamada Hikaru, Fujimoto Yoshimichi, and other influential figures that defined this pivotal period in Japanese ceramic art. Exhibition catalog features new essays by Kazuko Todate (Art Critic/Member of the International Academy of Ceramics & former a chief curator of Ibaraki Ceramic Art Museum, Japan) & Daniel McOwan (Scholar and Curator of Japanese Art).

Dai Ichi Arts Ltd. is delighted to present to you this special exhibition, "Passages Through Time", which examines a brief history of Japanese ceramics from Post-War and Avant-Garde, to Contemporary Masters. We sincerely hope this brings beauty, introspection, and curiosity to your experience of time.