In Japan, the idea of the ceramic artist as an individual creator took shape in the early 20th century. Until the 19th century, ceramics were primarily produced through a system of divided labor in which craftsmen and kiln leaders contributed to a shared process. At the start of the modern era, however, a new generation emerged who worked independently, creating original forms and patterns shaped by their own ideas and technical skills.
Beyond ceramics made strictly for daily use, this modern wave of creators explored three primary directions. Some pursued figurative forms, giving shape to human and animal subjects. Others turned toward abstract or semi-abstract objects, particularly after the late 1940s. A third path, which remains central to contemporary practice, involved reinventing vessel forms as a medium for self-expression. Rather than treating them only as utilitarian containers, these artists reshaped vessels as carriers of individuality and imagination.
Three works by Koinuma Michio. Browse available works by the artist here.
The ceramic artworks of Koinuma Michio (1936–2021) are powerful examples of this approach. Born in Tokyo, he studied economics at Osaka University before undertaking postgraduate work at Waseda University. His turn toward ceramics was unexpected. Drawn to archaeology and inspired by masters such as Hamada Shoji and Kamoda Shoji, he left academia at the age of thirty-three, moved to Mashiko in Tochigi Prefecture, and devoted himself fully to clay. In 1970 he opened his own kiln, and by 1978 he was exhibiting in major galleries. His achievement was recognized in 2022 with the exhibition Koinuma Michio and His Age at the Mashiko Museum of Ceramic Art, which drew wide acclaim.
Seiichi Tanaka, “Portrait of Koinuma Michio,” undated, photograph, in Toh-Vol.10, Koinuma Michio | 陶肥沼美智雄, (Japan: Kyotoshoin, 2009) 35.
Koinuma built his work without the potter’s wheel, relying instead on hand-building and coil-building techniques. This process allowed his forms to maintain a raw physicality. His vessels, made from dark clay, often possess a strength and density that recall weathered stone or corroded metal. Even when glazed, they project a sense of mass and solidity, inviting the viewer to experience their grounded, temporal and primal quality.
Archaeological memory lies at the heart of his surfaces. They often seem like relics excavated from forgotten ruins, carrying a patina of age and history. At the same time, his forms are particularly modern, sometimes bordering on otherworldly in their geometric forms. This relationship between the ancient and the contemporary found in his work, gives his ceramics its distinctive character. Inspirations for his output ranged widely among many archaeological materials from several early civilizations: from dog sculptures and fantastical objects to vessels that recall archaic funerary objects of Chinese bronzes, or the clay figures of the Jōmon period found in tomb contexts across Japan, each creation resists easy classification, operating instead across multiple layers of space and time.
Three works by Koinuma Michio. Browse available works by the artist here.
Through this balance of past and present, Koinuma gave traditional vessel forms new life as expressive objects. His ceramics are not limited to function but stand as works to be displayed, handled, and cherished. They embody strength, individuality, and imagination, demonstrating how the vessel, one of the oldest human forms, can continue to evolve as a language of creative expression.
Dai Ichi Arts, LTD. an adapted text from the writing of Kazuko Todate & Daniel McOwan from their contributing exhibition catalog essays, August 2025
