Jar thumbnail 1
Jar thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 137, The Curtain Foundation Gallery

This object consists of 2 parts, some of which may be located elsewhere.

Jar

1988 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The jar with marbleized floral pattering is by Matsui Kosei (b.1927), a Kasama-bases artist who has the unusual distinction of having combined his career as a ceramist with that of being a Buddhist priest. The technique of marbleizing (neriage) originated in Tang period (618-906) China and was used extensively at the Cizhou kilns in Habei Province during the Song period. There is little history of its use in Japan until the twentieth century, when artists such as Kawai Kanjiro (1890-1966) began to experiment with it. Matsui's interests, inspired primarily by Cizhou ware models, developed during the 1960s. He was encouraged to specialize in the technique by Tamura Koichi (1918-87; appointed Living National Treasure in1986) of Tokyo University of Arts, with whom he studied in the late 1960s.
Over the last twenty-five years Matsui has made a series of remarkable innovations using a rich palette of often vibrantly coloured clays. The work shown here is relatively restrained in its use of shades of blue, grey and cream, and the regularly disposed floral pattering is intricate without being overwhelming. Its smooth surface is more reminiscent of its historical prototypes than the rich textures of the works he produced until the mid-1980s. Matsui was made a Living National Treasure in 1993.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Jar
  • Storage Box
Materials and techniques
Stoneware with marbled patterning
Brief description
Japan, modern crafts, studio, ceramics; Matsui Kosei

Japan, modern crafts, studio, ceramics
Physical description
Stoneware with marbleized patterning in shades of blue and grey. Decoration: Floral pattern.

Box: Wooden box
Dimensions
  • Height: 28.10cm
  • Diameter: 30.50cm
Style
Gallery label
12. JAR Made by Matsui Kosei (Japanese, 1927-2003) Japan, 1988 Stoneware with neriage (marbleized) patterning FE.1-1989 Gift of the artist [20th century gallery]
Credit line
Given by the artist
Object history
Given by the maker
Production
Artist: Matsui Kosei (1927-2003)
Biographical reference: 'Japanese Ceramics Today' p.126
Kasama, **, JAPAN
Subject depicted
Summary
The jar with marbleized floral pattering is by Matsui Kosei (b.1927), a Kasama-bases artist who has the unusual distinction of having combined his career as a ceramist with that of being a Buddhist priest. The technique of marbleizing (neriage) originated in Tang period (618-906) China and was used extensively at the Cizhou kilns in Habei Province during the Song period. There is little history of its use in Japan until the twentieth century, when artists such as Kawai Kanjiro (1890-1966) began to experiment with it. Matsui's interests, inspired primarily by Cizhou ware models, developed during the 1960s. He was encouraged to specialize in the technique by Tamura Koichi (1918-87; appointed Living National Treasure in1986) of Tokyo University of Arts, with whom he studied in the late 1960s.
Over the last twenty-five years Matsui has made a series of remarkable innovations using a rich palette of often vibrantly coloured clays. The work shown here is relatively restrained in its use of shades of blue, grey and cream, and the regularly disposed floral pattering is intricate without being overwhelming. Its smooth surface is more reminiscent of its historical prototypes than the rich textures of the works he produced until the mid-1980s. Matsui was made a Living National Treasure in 1993.
Bibliographic reference
Rupert Faulkner, Japanese Studio Crafts: Tradition and the Avant-Garde, London; Laurence King Publishing, 1995, plate no. 18
Collection
Accession number
FE.1&BOX-1989

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Record createdFebruary 12, 2000
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