The Kyoto Avant-Garde Ceramics Monument: Sodeisha's Half-Century Journey and the Masters of Obje-yaki

Chapter 1: The Founding of Sodeisha and the Tumultuous Post-War Ceramic Art History

1.1 1948, Kyoto. Post-War Liberation and Rebellion Against Established Concepts

"Wartime Material Control and Ban on Manufacturing and Sales of Luxury Goods (Seven-Seven Ban): 'Luxury is the enemy! You shouldn't be able to afford luxury!'"

 

The defeat in August 1945 (Showa 20) fundamentally overturned the values across all strata of Japanese society. Politics, economy, ideology, state, and even art—the established authorities and virtues that had been absolute until then instantly lost their persuasive power. In this turbulent era, the world of ceramic art in Kyoto, an ancient capital with a thousand years of tradition, was also in the midst of a profound upheaval. Young potters, whose production activities had been suppressed both spiritually and physically by wartime material controls and the ban on manufacturing and selling luxury goods (the Seven-Seven Ban), harbored an unprecedented longing for intense expression amidst the post-war chaos and liberation.

However, the Kyoto ceramics world at the time was dominated by an anachronistic judging system centered on the official exhibitions (Nitten), a hierarchical iemoto system, and an apprenticeship system in traditional ceramic businesses that had been passed down for generations. In this environment, no matter how fresh the artistic impulses of young people born into the kilns of Kamigoryo and Gojozaka, priority was given to tracing existing forms and styles, and individual freedom of expression was severely restricted. If aspiring artists tried to express their unique individuality, they were forced to cater to the tastes of the masters who judged the open exhibitions, or create works that fit within the framework of traditional aesthetics, resulting in an extremely stagnant situation.

This movement of dissent against the pressure of tradition and institutionalized authority reached its peak in the late 1940s. In the free atmosphere brought about by a period of transition, young talents in Kyoto began to gather, seeking a new environment that would enable self-expression no longer merely imitating others. It was in 1948 (Showa 23) that a solidarity of young people emerged, who either withdrew from established art organizations or rejected them, striving to achieve pure artistic freedom.

1.2 Cracks in the Traditional Concept of "Vessel"

 "Kazuo Yagi (Two-mouthed Pot, 1950)"

 

In the process of ideological radicalization leading to the formation of Sodeisha, the most critical point of contention was the emergence of doubt regarding the premise of functionality (utility), which had been considered an absolute truth in ceramic art. In the history of ceramics until then, vessels were tools for holding something, and no matter how beautifully decorated, their form always centered on space (emptiness) and was destined to have functionality. However, as the wave of post-war modernism swept across the entire art world, the attempt to remove the boundary between pure art (fine art), such as sculpture and painting, and craft, which was based on utility, rapidly became a tangible possibility among young potters.

They realized that clay, ever since humanity discovered fire, was a material with infinite potential for shaping, capable of being freely transformed and imprinted with one's will. Despite this, why did potters have to remain bound by the form of a vessel that has a mouth, a body, and a bottom? The initial impulse to express the weight, plasticity, precision, and deformations or cracks caused by firing as a pure visual art, rather than merely using clay as a vessel wall that separates inside from outside, created a decisive crack in the traditional concept of the vessel.

This movement also resonated with the trends of abstract expressionism and contemporary sculpture abroad at the time. The attempt to completely liberate clay from the constraints of a vessel and to create a three-dimensional representation of one's spiritual world in space using the fundamental elements of earth and fire. This ideological Copernican shift marked the beginning of an uncharted realm of expression that would lead to objet-yaki (objet ware).

1.3 What Sodeisha Aimed For and the Significance of its Founding (Complete Departure from the Beauty of Function)

"Osamu Suzuki, Work (1954)"

 

The name "Sodeisha," formed in 1948 (Showa 23) by young potters in Kyoto, embodied a raw, uncompromising avant-garde spirit: "to run through mud, covered in mud, yet forge new artistic frontiers." Their aim was not merely to reject existing art organizations or to compete with superficial novelty in style. It was the establishment of a completely new and unique sculptural language using ceramic materials.

Examining the statements they published at their founding and their early trials, it is clear they did not initially completely reject utility. However, as they acutely felt that the existing aesthetic of beauty of utility was, in effect, a hindrance to the artist's free sculptural thinking, the group's ideological direction rapidly purified itself into a complete negation of utility, that is, the pursuit of objet as pure three-dimensional sculpture.

Stopping the hollow space that serves as the function of a vessel, and presenting a mass of earth as a substance. Or, piercing countless holes in a container that should originally hold liquid, making its use impossible. This accumulation of radical experiments became a historical turning point that forcibly elevated ceramics, which had been regarded as a subfield of craft in the Japanese ceramic world, into the context of contemporary art (fine art). The greatest founding significance left by Sodeisha lies in establishing a new genre called Objet-yaki, a pure three-dimensional sculpture that completely abandoned utility, and fundamentally redefined the very concept of craft.

Chapter 2: The Ideologies of the Five Founders and the Crossroads of Fate

2.1 Origins and Early Common Ground of the Five Founding Members

"Sodeisha Members Group Photo (circa 1957-1959)"

 

When examining the profiles of the five original members who founded Sodeisha—Kazuo Yagi, Osamu Suzuki, Hikaru Yamada, Bisuke Matsui, and Tetsuo Kano—a crucial fact is that all of them were born and raised in the traditional ceramic environment of Kyoto (such as Gojozaka, Imakumano, and Kamigoryo in Higashiyama Ward). From a young age, they had absorbed the advanced traditional techniques of Kiyomizu-yaki, kneading clay, turning the wheel, and firing kilns, as a bodily sensation. They were not newcomers who had learned ceramics from the outside, but rather descendants of genuine potters who had grown up within the overwhelming discipline of Kyoto's artisan society.

This commonality of possessing advanced traditional techniques gave their avant-garde movement solid persuasive power. They did not resort to bizarre forms because their basic techniques were immature. Rather, precisely because they possessed the outstanding skill to create perfect vessels as artisans, their sense of crisis regarding merely imitating or reproducing tradition was all the more intense and urgent. It was precisely because they had a foundation of perfect technique that the quality of destruction—the daring dismantling and reconstruction of that technique—was guaranteed. The initial spiritual solidarity of these five individuals was bound by respect for advanced craftsmanship and the fated artistic conflict of needing to transcend it.

2.2 The Exploration of Kazuo Yagi, Osamu Suzuki, and Hikaru Yamada: The "Three Pillars of Sodeisha"

① Kazuo Yagi: The Ceramic Career and Evolution of an Ideological Leader

"Kazuo Yagi (1918-1979)"

 

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Apprenticeship

: Born in Kyoto in 1918 (Taisho 7). His father was Isosuke Yagi I, famous for his unique literati ceramics. He studied sculpture at the Kyoto City School of Arts and Crafts, acquiring a foundational understanding of sculptural spatial perception. Closely observing both his father Isosuke's thorough artisan philosophy and artistic views, he sought his own modern aesthetic from a young age. He passed away in 1979.

 

ⅱ. Techniques and Style

: In his early work, he experimented with deformed vessels using overglaze enamels and smooth glazes, but gradually shifted towards unglazed black pottery (kokuto) techniques. He established a unique sculptural expression called Deisho (mud images), which involved directly carving forms from clay masses or meticulously joining molded parts. "Mr. Samsa's Walk," unveiled in 1954 (Showa 29), is revered as one of the earliest pure objet works in Japanese ceramic art, completely eliminating the mouth of a vessel and featuring multiple leg-like protrusions and wheel-like forms.

 

ⅲ. Perspective and Vision

: Yagi's focus was not on clay as the wall of a vessel, but on the sculptural and philosophical landscape of how the material itself carves out space and asserts its presence. A strong will to elevate ceramic art to modern pure art, on par with or even surpassing painting and sculpture, permeated all his creative work.

② Osamu Suzuki: Poetic Form and the Life Force of Clay

"Osamu Suzuki (1934-2001)"

 

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Apprenticeship

: Born in Kyoto in 1926 (Taisho 15). His father, Kiyoshi Suzuki, was a traditional Kiyomizu-yaki decorator who showed outstanding skill at the workshop of Jinmatsu Uno and elsewhere. He grew up observing his father's thorough handiwork and graduated from the painting department of the Kyoto City School of Arts and Crafts. He had a painterly sense of color and a background in advanced Kyoto craftsmanship. He passed away in 2001.

"Osamu Suzuki's Work, Beer Mug "Return to Primitive Art," circa 1955"

 

ⅱ. Techniques and Style

: Using celadon, white porcelain, and warm red clay, he developed extremely refined, organic, and poetic three-dimensional forms. Along with Yagi, he advocated the concept of Deisho (mud images), characterized by solid, streamlined forms that abstract natural phenomena (wind, clouds, sun) and animals (horses, birds, etc.) to their utmost limit.

ⅲ. Perspective and Vision

: Suzuki favored the overflowing, fundamental life force inherent in the act of firing clay itself. His perspective was always directed towards the fusion of the warmth of earth and a dignified presence, something that could only be expressed through ceramics, while employing highly calculated craftsmanship. Rather than a cold avant-garde, he shaped poetic landscapes born from a deep communion with material.

③ Hikaru Yamada: A Rational Approach Through Space and Plane

 

"Hikaru Yamada (1923-2001)"

 

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Apprenticeship

: Born in Tokyo in 1923 (Taisho 12). Moved to Kyoto and grew up under his father, Tsutomu Yamada, a potter (connected to the lineage of Rokubee Kiyomizu). He studied design at the Kyoto City School of Arts and Crafts, where he was thoroughly trained in the fundamentals of design and geometric composition. He passed away in 2001.

"Hikaru Yamada's Work, Coffee Bowl with Hakeme and Iron-Painted Dotted Lines, early 1960s"

 

ⅱ. Techniques and Style

: He specialized in geometric compositions combining thin slab-like clay (tatara), applying black pottery and slipware techniques. He created sharp slits on the surface of his works, visually reversing the relationship between the inside and outside of the vessel, and developed unique three-dimensional forms that allow space to permeate like a screen.

 

ⅲ. Perspective and Vision

: Yamada's vision was to rationally deconstruct the structure of void and substance (space and material) in ceramic art. The landscape he saw was not one of intuitive, emotional forms, but rather something closer to architectural and graphic semiotics. He sought to open new conceptual horizons in ceramics through meticulously calculated compositions of planes and lines.

2.3 Two Divergent Paths: The Choices of Bisuke Matsui and Tetsuo Kano and Their Backgrounds

① Bisuke Matsui: Return to Utility and Traditional Techniques, and His Unique Perspective

 

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Style

: Born in Kyoto in 1926 (Taisho 15). He grew up in the traditional kiln environment of Gojozaka and possessed solid forming and firing techniques from a young age. As a founding member of Sodeisha in 1948, he shared in the dawn of the avant-garde aimed at breaking through the post-war stagnation.

 

ⅱ. Background and Reasons for Departure

: Shortly after its formation, as Sodeisha, centered around Yagi and others, rapidly inclined towards the complete negation of vessels and the complete rejection of utility, Matsui faced a profound disconnect with his identity as a craftsman. For Matsui, the essence of beauty and the pinnacle of technique in ceramic art resided precisely in the context of the beauty of utility—to be touched by hand and used in daily life. Feeling a sense of unease with the group's direction towards isolated art objects that abandoned utility in the name of avant-garde, he chose to return to the world of traditional Kiyomizu-yaki, that is, the warmth of craft deeply rooted in people's lives, at a very early stage in the early 1950s, and left the group.

② Tetsuo Kano (Kano Shotani II): The Legacy Inherited from the Great Master Mitsuo Kano and the Conflict with "Beauty of Utility"

 

"Second Generation Kano Shotani (Tetsuo), Nenshonzui-i Large Bowl"

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Style

: Born in Kyoto in 1927 (Showa 2). He was raised in the lineage of the distinguished Kano family of Kiyomizu-yaki, his father being the first Kano Shotani (Birth name Kenichi). The greatest turning point and technical and spiritual pillar for him was the presence of his own uncle and direct teacher, the great master Mitsuo Kano (1903–1970). After the war, Tetsuo assisted his father's workshop while thoroughly studying under his uncle, Mitsuo Kano. Mitsuo, who studied under Shinobu Komori, a pioneer of modern scientific ceramics in Japan, left an overwhelming legacy in the selection of official kilns in Manchuria and research into ancient Chinese ceramics. He was a world-renowned authority on glazes, with his works permanently housed in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto. From this exceptionally great master, Tetsuo directly inherited the essence of Kiyomizu-yaki, overglaze enamels, underglaze blue, and extremely difficult glaze compounding techniques. Therefore, by the time he joined the formation of Sodeisha at the young age of 21 in 1948, he already possessed a level of traditional technical backing that distinguished him from other young artists, being both seasoned and highly advanced.

ⅱ. Background and Reasons for Departure

: As Sodeisha, centered around Kazuo Yagi and others, pushed forward with the establishment of pure three-dimensional forms (objet ware) that completely excluded utility, Tetsuo Kano faced an unbearable and deep spiritual conflict. This was not merely a difference of opinion on expression. It was a fated anguish, backed by the weight of lineage and history, over whether he should completely destroy and discard the transmission of the beauty of utility—the pinnacle of aesthetics and technique—established by his father's lineage and by his esteemed master and uncle, Mitsuo Kano, through painstaking research, for the sake of the avant-garde.

"Mitsuo Kano's Work, Hariyu Yūsai Large Bowl/Vase, circa 1955–1962"

 

Indeed, examining the footsteps of his uncle and teacher, Mitsuo Kano, records show that by July 1942 (Showa 17), before the war, he had already completed meticulous research into his unique hariyu glaze (ice crackle glaze) formulation (e.g., 75 parts Nango feldspar to 25 parts lead-free white jade). After the war, anticipating his exceptional skill, he was commissioned by the wife of the renowned architect Antonin Raymond to create numerous cutting-edge modern Western tableware, embodying the pinnacle of modernism within the realm of utility.

For Tetsuo, his master's presence was overwhelmingly significant, and he was convinced that the infinite possibilities of glaze and clay could only be fully realized within the constraints of the vessel. Choosing a legitimate modern update of traditional techniques inherited from his master rather than the destruction of utility in the name of the avant-garde, he left Sodeisha at a very early stage, around 1951, as the group's radical shift towards objet progressed. Subsequently, he inherited the family's artistic tradition, taking the name Kano Shotani II. He further deepened highly advanced techniques such as his unique hariyu sumi-yaki, which involves applying white slip to an iron-containing clay body, followed by bisque firing and then Hariyu glaze, establishing a world of functional ware where tradition and modernity merged at the highest level.

Chapter 3: The Evolution of Sodeisha and the Mavericks Who Inherited its Avant-Garde Spirit

3.1 The Establishment and Evolution of "Objet-yaki" Through the Entry of the Second Generation

The early departure of two founding members, Matsui and Kano (Tetsuo), who returned to the realm of utilitarian ware, initially seemed to threaten Sodeisha's organizational strength. However, history had a different outcome. From the late 1950s to the 1960s, Sodeisha moved beyond the initial destructive impulse of negating the vessel and transitioned to a second stage, establishing it as a robust genre of contemporary art in society. Joining at this crucial turning point were the next generation of talented potters, later known as the second generation.

They cultivated and deepened the avant-garde wilderness pioneered by the three founding pillars (Yagi, Suzuki, and Yamada) with their more refined and unique sculptural aesthetics. They developed the theories and techniques necessary to transcend the framework of specific open exhibitions and engage on equal terms with the contexts of sculpture and contemporary art. With the entry of the second generation, Sodeisha completely transcended the confines of a personal movement by its founding members. This was a historically decisive factor for its evolution and establishment as a massive avant-garde stronghold that would reign at the pinnacle of contemporary Japanese ceramic art for half a century until its dissolution in 1998 (Heisei 10).

3.2 Satoshi Sato: The Artist Most Highly Regarded by Kazuo Yagi

"Satoshi Sato (1936-2019)"

 

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Technique

: Born in 1936 (Showa 11) in a region with a tradition of limited companies and artisans, he studied ceramic art in the craft department at Kyoto City University of Arts. There, he received direct instruction from top masters like Kenkichi Tomimoto, the conscience of modern ceramics, and Yuzo Kondo, a Living National Treasure, and was rigorously trained in precise forming, meticulous glaze theory, and a high ethical standard for ceramic production. He joined Sodeisha as an associate artist in the 1960s. He passed away in 2019.

"Satoshi Sato's Work (Karajan 98-1 (A), 1960s)"

 

 

"Satoshi Sato's Work (Iroe Mica Gold Painted Tatara Sake Pitcher)"

 

ⅱ. Style and Characteristics

: Satoshi Sato's style is characterized by a meticulously calculated sharp geometric composition and an extremely intellectual finish, where the texture of the clay material and the chemical changes caused by glazes are controlled to the utmost limit. He didn't merely create bizarre forms from clay; rather, he completely fused the hardness and spirituality that can only be expressed in ceramic art with the context of contemporary art (minimalism and conceptual art).

ⅲ. Relationship with Kazuo Yagi

: Kazuo Yagi, the absolute charisma of Sodeisha, was astonished by the appearance of the maverick Satoshi Sato. Yagi highly valued Sato's uncompromising aesthetic of form and his overwhelming technical quality inherited from renowned masters more than anyone else, showing the deepest trust and full confidence in him among the associate artists. A tense and historical record eloquently speaks to this fact. When Yuya Inui, a leading authority in modern and contemporary ceramic criticism, asked Yagi, who was then around fifty years old, "Who do you think is the most promising new talent in Sodeisha now?", Yagi said no more but immediately responded with a firm and decisive tone, "Well, it's probably Satoshi Sato. He does quite interesting things."

At that time, there was a fated spiritual resonance between Sato, who was in his thirties and brimming with talent, and Yagi, intensely stimulating each other's artistic ambitions, far beyond the ordinary formal relationships. Therefore, when Yagi suddenly passed away tragically in 1979, Sato immediately left Sodeisha without hesitation. Years later, Sato's exquisite and heartfelt remark, "I had an arrow to shoot, but I lost the target," profoundly illustrates how pivotal the encounter with the monumental figure of Kazuo Yagi was in his ceramic career. The landscape Sato saw was the pinnacle of extremely serious artistic expression, completely transcending the narrow framework of domestic craft to confront global art trends on equal terms.

3.3 Rikichi Miyanaga (Miyanaga Tozan III): The Paradox of Distinguished Lineage and the Avant-Garde

"Rikichi Miyanaga (1935-)"

 

ⅰ. Ceramic History and Background

: Born in Kyoto in 1935 (Showa 10). He was born into a distinguished family that boasts the highest standard of celadon in the Japanese ceramic world, a lineage that began with the first Miyanaga Tozan. The Miyanaga Tozan family served the Imperial Household Agency and received numerous honors at world expositions, essentially the royal family in the world of traditional Kiyomizu-yaki. Rikichi, at a young age, perfectly inherited the family's impeccable traditional celadon techniques and the discipline of handling the highest quality materials.

ⅱ. Clash of Tradition and Avant-Garde

: The fact that he, who was promised a brilliant future as the legitimate successor of a distinguished family, dared to throw himself into Sodeisha, the most radical avant-garde art group, is still recounted today as one of the greatest paradoxes in the history of contemporary ceramic art. This was not mere rebellion. It was an extremely luxurious and deliberate counter-expression by someone who understood tradition more perfectly than anyone else and could create more beautiful vessels than anyone else, yet deliberately shed that privilege to pursue pure three-dimensional forms that completely excluded utility.

ⅲ. Establishment of Objet-yaki and Analysis of Works in Our Collection:

Rikichi Miyanaga established a unique world where he used the supremely elegant celadon glaze and forming techniques inherited from the Tozan family, but poured them not into vessels, but into pure abstract sculptures (objet-yaki). The overwhelming nobility (dignified presence) of his works was a reflection of his lineage.

*Rikichi Miyanaga's Celadon Objet "Daruma Standing Statue"

This is an extremely valuable three-dimensional sculptural work that can be considered the culmination of Rikichi Miyanaga's later years, reconstructing the traditional Buddhist art motif of "Daruma" through the avant-garde spirit cultivated in Sodeisha and the highest-level techniques inherited from the esteemed Miyanaga Tozan kiln. The most remarkable aspect of this work is the perfect fusion of two contrasting expressions within a single form: the body of "yakishime" (unglazed, high-fired stoneware) sculpted with extreme realism, and the boldly abstracted "celadon" robe. The Daruma's sharp-eyed expression and the vivid texture from the hair on its chest to its skeletal structure demonstrate meticulous sculptural beauty that directly conveys the energy of the unglazed clay itself. On the other hand, the robe, which completely covers the head to the feet, is composed of flowing curves and sharp edges, and is extremely modernly abstracted by the captivatingly beautiful celadon glaze. By daring to tackle a figurative motif and confronting the intense contrast between "hyperrealistic super-technique" and "extreme abstraction," and "rough unglazed clay surface" and "smooth glassy (celadon)" surface, Miyanaga, who led Sodeisha's objet ceramics, miraculously achieved both the profound religious spirituality of Daruma and the intellectual beauty of a modern sculpture, making it a masterpiece unparalleled both domestically and internationally.

*Rikichi Miyanaga's Celadon Objet "Tiger"

While utilizing the traditional auspicious motif of the twelve Chinese zodiac signs, this work's expression is entirely imbued with Sodeisha's avant-garde spirit and Rikichi Miyanaga's refined, modern sculptural philosophy. This piece strips away all organic curves and unnecessary ornamentation from the form of a wild animal like a tiger, reducing it to a pure aesthetic of form (volume) through a sharp, almost architectural, composition of "planes." The uniformly beautiful celadon glaze covering the entire body creates rich shadows (gradations) as light hits the meticulously calculated edges and flat surfaces, exuding a sculptural charm like hard crystal. Furthermore, despite its highly abstract and geometric form, the rhythmically painted whiskers in iron-oxide pigment (black pigment) around the mouth add a touch of exquisite charm and vitality to this avant-garde objet. This masterpiece transcends the traditional context of utility and auspicious objects, presenting the viewer with the pure beauty of material (celadon) and form. It is an extremely artistic work that harmonizes perfectly with contemporary sophisticated spaces, regardless of Japanese or Western style.

 

ⅳ. Comment from Kazuo Yagi on Rikichi Miyanaga:

Hereditary potters have a heavy burden. Even if their work is good, people immediately suspect that tradition is only part of it. In other words, success is taken for granted. Rikichi-kun is the third generation of the master craftsman Miyanaga Tozan. I hear that many third-generation artists tend to be rebellious, but his spatial processing, which is uncharacteristic of a potter, is because he is also a sculptor, so it is not an act of defiance. However, in this world that prefers distortions in elegant ceramics, could that gentle modesty at the bottom of his strong action, which attempts to expand the realm of honest porcelain, perhaps be the shadow of the third generation? Kazuo Yagi (1918-1979)

Chapter 4: The Genealogy of Utilitarian Sake Vessels Left by Masters and the Aesthetic of Mutation in Craft

4.1 The Paradox of "Deliberately" Creating Utilitarian Tableware and Sake Vessels by Masters of Objet-yaki

"Hikaru Yamada's Work, Coffee Bowl with Hakeme and Iron-Painted Dotted Lines, early 1960s"

 

The artists of Sodeisha, who redefined Japanese contemporary art history by making abandoning utility their identity and thoroughly dismantling and destroying the concept of the vessel, are primarily recognized and collected in museums for their radical objet works. However, there is a surprising fact: these avant-garde masters, very rarely during their long lives, or as special commissioned pieces for close acquaintances, or perhaps as a deliberate challenge to their own advanced skills, created highly utilitarian tableware and sake vessels.

The functional vessels created by men who rejected vessels and clamored for a complete departure from the beauty of use possess an overwhelming tension in their forms and lingering scent of the avant-garde, clearly setting them apart from vessels made by ordinary artisans. They did not create forms for use. Instead, they dared to confine intense three-dimensional thinking as objects within the minuscule framework of a vessel. The vessels born from this paradoxical process transcend merely being easy-to-use tools, simultaneously functioning as pure three-dimensional art to be appreciated in the palm of one's hand.