Kakiemon ware, late 1600s.
(photo by Museado on Flickr)
In the first part of our A to Z of Japanese pottery, we provide a run-down of the main styles, from Arita ware through to Kyoto Ware. Along the way, we offer plenty of pointers on how to recognize the differences between them all.
Arita ware, or Aritayaki in Japanese, comes from the town of Arita in Saga Prefecture, on Kyushu Island in the south of Japan. In the 17th Century Arita was – and indeed still is to a considerable degree – one of the most important centers of Japanese pottery. In part this is due to the quantity of naturally occurring kaolin deposits found in the local clay; providing an abundance of raw materials for the production of high quality pottery. In fact it was in Arita that clay suitable for making porcelain was first discovered in Japan around 400 years ago.
In English, the term Arita ware was traditionally used to refer to porcelain made-for-export items mimicking blue and white Chinese designs. Later it also became synonymous with a more colorful form of decoration – known as Kakiemon after the name of its founder Kakiemon Sakaida. Both of these styles are prized for their combination of delicacy and strength and were made extensively for export to Europe.
Pottery stores in Arita, Saga, Japan.
(Photo by Butch via Wikimedia Commons)
Today pottery is alive and well in the Hizen region (the area surrounding Arita), and the district of Arita itself is something of a mecca for Japanese pottery enthusiasts. In particular, the quaint village of Aritauchiyama, with its well-preserved machiya shophouses, is a favorite with those seeking beautiful handmade pottery at reasonable prices. Here many local kilns still operate commercially and supplement their earnings by offering pottery classes.
Although the name Arita is much less well known outside of Japan than that of neighboring port-town Imari, in actual fact a lot of what was exported as Imari ware actually came from Arita. As the point of export, the name Imari was used generically to refer to all Japanese pottery shipped from Imari, regardless of its actual origin.
A Bizen ware sake bottle with hidasuki marks, Edo period, mid-17th century.
Known as Bizenyaki in Japanese, Bizen ware is a distinctive iron-toned style of Japanese pottery. It is sometimes also referred to as Inbe or Imbe ware, as it comes from the village of Imbe in Okayama prefecture – an area that was formerly named Bizen Province. It is one of the oldest of Japan’s pottery making techniques and sits firmly at the “random” end of the Japanese pottery arc (see our guide to Japanese pottery for more on this).
Local clay is used when making Bizen ware, and a wood-fired kiln is considered essential to its production. This is not so much out of a stubborn adherence to tradition as it is a necessity; unglazed and generally simple in design, Bizen ware gains most of its rich and earthy characteristics from the reddish-brown color of the region’s clay and the effects created by slow-firing with pine wood.
Despite reliance upon naturally-occurring kiln artifacts as a form of decoration, the production of Bizen ware requires a great deal of skill, and Bizen artisans are able to achieve a surprising variety of designs. These include a “sesame seed” effect caused by pine ash adhering to the surface of pots during firing, and slashes of red that look like random brush strokes but are actually caused by tying straw to the pots before placing them in the kiln.
(Photo by Hiroyuki Kawai via Flickr)
Traditionally Bizen ware held an important place in the Chadō (tea ceremony). As a result, Bizen kilns were given strong support from powerful Okayama families. Despite this, the production of Bizen ware had all but disappeared by the Meiji era. Today, however, Bizen ware is thriving, and visitors to the region can view countless examples of both antique and contemporary Bizen ware in local museums and active Imbe kilns alike.
(Photo via Hiroyuki Kawai on Flickr)
Hagi is a town in Yamaguchi prefecture, located on the Sea of Japan – lying directly west of Hiroshima. The town has been producing a distinctive style of Japanese pottery known as Hagiyaki – or Hagi ware – for at least 400 years.
Hagi ware is characterized by a smooth and earthy texture, caused by the nature of the region’s clay. Its rustic appeal made it a much sought after item for the tea ceremony, and cemented the town’s importance as a producer of ceramics.
Beyond the organic qualities imparted by the local clay, there are no strict rules to the production of Hagi ware. Individual kilns tend to develop their own distinctive approaches. Nonetheless, strong emphasis is put on the design of the foot, which is often rough and rustic in appearance. And all Hagi ware is united by a unique sensitivity to the tactile experience of handling the finished item.
Because the clay used for Hagi ware is slightly porous, its color will often subtly change with use, as tea or sake slowly seep into the crackled surface of the clay. This phenomenon has led to the phrase Hagi no nanabake, which effectively means “the seven forms of Hagi” – referring to the number of times that a Hagi bowl is said to transform in appearance over the course of its life.
Hagi ware is still produced – indeed highly prized – today. And visitors to the region will be rewarded with the possibility of visiting local kilns, of which over 100 remain active within the city.
For Hizen ware see Arita ware and Imari ware.
(Photo via Japan Style on Flickr)
Iga ware originates from the towns of Iga and Nabari in Mie prefecture. Due to the nature of the local clay, Iga ware is exceedingly heat-resistant and must be fired for several days. It is among the oldest of Japan’s pottery traditions. Unsurprisingly, then, Iga ware was first developed as simple items necessary for the daily lives of the region’s inhabitants – most of whom were farmers.
Over time, however, Iga ware evolved from basic pots and jars to “higher level” items intended for use in the tea ceremony. Nonetheless, Iga ware retains a strong wabi-sabi aesthetic, and intentional errors and irregularities resulting from the processes of throwing and firing are highly valued. Indeed, Iga ware is distinctive for its flowing glaze technique known as biidoro in Japanese (from vidro, the Portuguese word for “glass”) and for the decorative use of scorch marks caused by aggressive firing.
The most famous piece of Iga ware is a unique mizusashi (water container) from the 16th or 17th Century nicknamed the yabure-bukuro (“burst bag”). The yabure-bukuro gains much of its charm from its collapsed form, random scoring, and the fingerprints left by its maker. As such, it clearly exemplifies the ideals of simplicity, nature, imperfection, and impermanence that lie behind much Iga pottery.
Iga ware is still produced today and an annual Iga ware festival is held in the district each September.
Imari ware with double flower vase design, Edo period.
(Photo via Museado on Flickr)
When talking about Imari ware it’s important to specify precisely which Imari pottery is being discussed. Technically, Imari ware comes from the town of Imari in Saga prefecture, close to Arita (above) and just a short hop from the other main Saga pottery town of Karatsu (see below). This is how the term is understood by most people in Japan today.
In English usage, however, the term Imari ware is generally used to refer to a specific kind of busy and colorful Japanese porcelain that was exported from Imari in the 17th Century by the Dutch East India Company, via their base in Nagasaki. This is known as Kinrande in Japanese. Meanwhile the name Arita ware, in English, was reserved for a kind of Chinese-style blue and white porcelain.
Blue and white porcelain Arita wear.
(Photo via Museado on Flickr)
In reality, though, the two towns are very close together (don’t say it to the locals, but modern Imari is effectively just the port neighborhood of Arita). So close, in fact, that these separate styles were often produced in the same kilns. And what was historically known to Europeans as Imari Ware was as likely to have been made in neighboring Arita as it was in Imari.
To add further mist to the mountaintop, the area around Imari was formerly named Hizen, and so some people collectively refer to ceramics from the region as Hizen ware.
This confusion aside, modern Imari is home to several galleries. Some showing pottery in styles close to those associated with the historical term Imari ware; others displaying more contemporary pottery.
In Japan today, the historical European-export pottery is now often referred to as “Old Imariyaki” to differentiate it from the output of any modern kilns in the Imari-Arita area.
Irabo Tea bowl, Korea, Joseon dynasty, 17th century.
As Irabo ware was made in Korea, it is technically not Japanese pottery at all. However, Irabo ware was often made specifically to Japanese specifications, and designed for use in Japanese tea ceremonies. That being the case, a guide to Japanese pottery that didn’t include Irabo ware would be incomplete.
The name Irabo comes from the Japanese term ira-ira; a fun little word meaning to be irritated or annoyed. Not because Irabo ware was particularly disliked – on the contrary, Irabo pottery was and still is highly valued – but because the rough, thinly-glazed surface of the bowls was seen as “irritating” to the touch.
Irabo ware is usually quite simple in design, with the pleasing color of baked oatmeal biscuits. A typical Irabo chawan will have an uneven appearance, flaring somewhat in form at the top, with a speckled and organic-looking glaze.
Kakiemon dish, Edo period.
(Photos via Museado on Flickr)
Kakiemon is effectively a sub-genre of export Imari Ware. And like Imari Ware, it is a term that is somewhat confusing.
Initially Kakiemon was made solely by a kiln belonging to the Kakiemon family in the Hizen region (the site of modern day Imari-Arita). After a while, however, other potters began producing similar-looking enamelware. The style was also highly prized by Europeans, who later replicated it on an industrial scale. And once China resumed exports to Europe, they too copied Kakiemon in order to meet the demands of the European market.
Even more misleadingly, despite being a niche style within the genre of Imari ware, the term Kakiemon is sometimes used outside of Japan to refer to all Imari export-ware in general.
Nonetheless, Kakiemon is a distinctive style of pottery that is characterized by very fine and restrained overglaze enamel work. It’s easily recognizable by its near-transparent glaze over a white porcelain body and enameled embellishment using a color palette typically limited to kaki (the Japanese word for persimmon), pale yellow, smokey blue and turquoise.
Decorative elements are delicate, precisely executed, and often incorporate figurative floral and animal motifs. In short, on the scale of rough to refined, Kakiemon is well and truly positioned at the “controlled” end of things.
A Karamono tea bowl, Fujian province, Song dynasty.
As with Irabo ware (above), Karamono is not really Japanese. Indeed, by definition the word Karamono refers to goods made in China and imported to Japan. However, in the specific case of ceramics, some of these were designed by Japanese potters and ordered to spec; making use of techniques that at the time were not available to them in Japan. For example, porcelain and cobalt underglazed items made in Ming Dynasty China in an age before Japanese kilns knew how to employ these techniques themselves.
The result of this is that Chinese kilns often made items for export to Japan that they had never previously made for consumption at home. In this respect, many Karamono pottery items can be considered a unique fusion of Japanese and Chinese ceramic expertise.
A Karatsu wear tea ceremony vessel, Edo period, early 19th century.
Modern day Karatsu is a beachside town in Saga prefecture. As Karatsu is only about an hour’s drive from Fukuoka – the capital of Kyushu and its biggest city – it is also something of a commuter satellite town. But for Japanese pottery enthusiasts, Karatsu is a destination in itself.
The town has been producing Karatsuyaki since at least the 16th Century. Characterized by an often earthy and natural feel, Karatsu ware is made from a local clay that is particularly sandy and rich in iron, making it especially durable. Karatsu ware may be glazed or left entirely unadorned.
Historically at least, Karatsu pottery is defiantly of the wabi-sabi school. Making it a popular choice for the tea ceremony. And with its often simple, unfussy forms, and subdued tones, Karatsuyaki contrasts starkly with the much more maximalist and refined output of nearby Imari-Arita kilns.
That said, several differing styles of Karatsu ware exist, largely depending on which part of Karatsu district the items hail from.
Today the central area of town, in front of Karatsu station, is home to numerous stores and galleries selling contemporary pieces from local potters. Meanwhile, in the surrounding countryside can be found a great many kilns; both historical ruins and fully operational ones. Many of the latter are of exceptionally high quality and renown.
A Kyoto wear overglaze enamel water jar from the studio of Nonomura Ninsei, Edo period, 17th Century.
Kyoyaki, or Kyoto ware, is essentially any pottery produced in the Kyoto area. Typically high-fired porcelain with overglaze enamel pigments. However, as Kyoto has long been one of the principal pottery-producing regions of Japan, is the country’s former political capital, and is arguably still its cultural capital, clearly this term includes quite a lot of different styles, and comprises a great many different techniques.
Nonetheless, numerous Japanese pottery experts have argued that Kyoyaki can be characterized by two main features; either a thick all-over monochrome glaze, usually in blue or green, or a low-relief technique resulting from multiple rounds of enamel overglazing.
The use of overglaze pigments emerged in Arita and Kyoto more or less simultaneously. However, whereas most Imari-Arita kilns churned out large numbers of anonymous pieces catering to a foreign market, Kyoto potters made their chawan only for domestic consumption. And viewing themselves more as artists than artisans, they also tended to sign their work.
As Japan's top destination for traditional arts and culture, Kyoto will of course already be on the itinerary of most visitors with an interest in Japanese pottery.
Enjoyed the first part of our A to Z to Japanese pottery? Check out part 2 here!