Ceramics In Japan

Ceramics In Japan

Ceramics In Japan

The earliest Japanese pottery was made around the 11th millennium BC. Jo-mon ware emerged in the 6th millennium BC and the plainer Yayoi style in about the 4th century BC. This early pottery was soft earthenware, fired at low temperatures. The potter's wheel and a kiln capable of reaching higher temperatures and firing stoneware appeared in the 3rd or 4th centuries AD, probably brought by southern Korean potters. In the 8th century, official kilns in Japan produced simple, green lead glazed wares. Unglazed stoneware was used funerary jars, storage jars and kitchen pots up to the 17th century. Some of the kilns improved their methods and are known as the "Six Old Kilns".

From the 11th to the 16th century, Japan imported much porcelain from China and some from Korea. The Japanese overlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi's attempts to conquer China in the 1590s were dubbed the "Ceramic Wars" because the emigration of Korean potters appeared to be a major cause. One of these potters, Yi Sam-pyeong, discovered the raw material of porcelain in Arita and produced first true porcelain in Japan.

In the 17th century, conditions in China drove some of its potters into Japan, bringing with them the knowledge to make refined porcelain. From the mid-century, the Dutch East India Company began to import Japanese porcelain into Europe. At this time, Kakiemon wares were produced at the factories of Arita, which had much in common with the Chinese Famille Verte style. The superb quality of its enamel decoration was highly prized in the West and widely imitated by the major European porcelain manufacturers. In 1971 it was declared an important "intangible cultural treasure" by the Japanese government.

In the 20th century, interest in the art of the village potter was revived by the Mingei folk movement led by potters Shoji Hamada, Kawai Kajiro and others. They studied traditional methods in order to preserve native wares that were in danger of disappearing. Modern masters use ancient methods to bring pottery and porcelain to new heights of achievement at Shiga, Iga, Karatsu, Hagi, and Bizen. A few outstanding potters were designated living cultural treasures zai. In the old capital of Kyoto, the Raku family continued to produce the rough tea bowls that had so delighted connoisseurs. At Mino, potters continued to reconstruct the classic formulas of Momoyama-era Seto-type tea wares of Mino, such as Oribe ware. By the 1990s many master potters worked away from ancient kilns and made classic wares in all parts of Japan.

POST COMMENT

Ceramics In Korea Know About Breakfast Cereals The origin of Burberry trench coats Burberry trench coats is so welcome How To Choose A Wood Burner Installer Cheap Toll Free Conference Call Line Different options available for gay adoption What You Need To Know About Alcohol Detox 2011 celebrations kick start with the 12th iifa voting weekend Visit the Burberry outlet Become scary zombie, with easy zombie makeup Why To Choose MacBook Pro How to have a safe Bed Bug Extermination?