Japanese Celadon Pottery Artist
Masakatsu Aoki
Joined a kiln in Okawauchiyama, Imari City, Saga Prefecture.
For five years studied directly under Seiroku Nakamura, an important intangible cultural asset of Saga Prefecture, and five years for a potter's wheel operation under Setsuzan Murashima.
Became independent and opened Aoki Pottery Studio.
Japan Kogei Association Official Member
The Main Work, ”Icy Blue Celadon”
Based on celadon porcelain, this piece is glazed with a mixture of ores to make it semi-matte.
What drove me to create this piece was the inspiration I received from some photographs of Los Glaciares, a World Heritage Site in Argentina.
The glacier-like pale blue color and the icy surface texture are very distinctive.
This work has been highly recognized as being unique beyond comparison and has received numerous ceramics awards.
Nabeshima-yaki, Japan's highest quality porcelain
From around the 16th century to the 19th century, top-grade ceramics were exported overseas from the port of Imari in Saga Prefecture.
The works created at that time are called "Old Imari" and even today there are avid collectors all over the world.
The lord who ruled the area at the time gathered a group of talented potters to build a kiln at Okawachiyama in order to produce even higher quality ceramics.
Nabeshima-yaki, or Nabeshima ware, is the name given to those ware made with advanced techniques, and is regarded as the pinnacle of Japanese porcelain.
Even today, there are around 30 potteries dotted about the area, handing over their traditional techniques and producing ceramics.
My Commitment to SDGS
In Japan, there has long been a culture of cherishing and caring for things, and an aesthetic sense that considers changes over time to be beautiful.
By looking at the culture and traditions that have been nurtured and handed down through the history and climate of this land, I endeavor to create ceramics that will be loved and cherished for a long time.
Information on the pottery
The exhibition hall of Aoki Pottery is located in Okawachiyama, Imari City, Saga Prefecture, in the southwestern part of Japan.
We are recreating and producing a 70-year-old folk house where our ancestors, who were Nabeshima ware craftsmen, lived.
Works are always exhibited and sold here.
* We do not ship products overseas.
■Address 1679-2 Ookawachiyama,Ookawachi-cho,Imari-city,Saga Prefecture,Japan
■Store Open 10am-5pm（Closed on Monday）
■Email : info@aokitobo.com
Access and Transport
From Saga Airport / By car: 75 minutes
From Fukuoka Airport / By bus: 140 minutes
From Hakata Train Station / By train: 120 minutes
From Imari Train Station / By bus: 20 minutes By taxi: 15 minutes
