10. Kishi Eiko 岸映子

Kishi Eiko was born in Nara Prefecture in 1948. She studied at Kyoto Seika University and at the Ceramic Research Center of the Kyoto Dishui Museum before opening her own studio in Kyotoe. At first glance, her objects are tightly modeled, with geometric shapes made up of planes and lines of clay. Upon closer inspection of the object, one is struck by the sparkling yet delicate surface caused by her special technique, which she calls "saiseki zogan": tiny geometric shapes delicately carved into the surface of her clay forms and then inlaid with subtly colored clay. As a result, her objects are both robust, clear forms and sparkling in an understated way, and every square inch is worth a closer inspection. Kishi Eiko is now one of the most celebrated ceramic artists working in Japan today. She has received numerous awards and her work is included in the collections of all major museums, including the Ashmloean Museum in Oxford, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Musée national de céramique in Paris and the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

Stone Seed, 2010, Sokyo Gallery

Compilation of Recollected Images 2017, Joan B. Mirviss LTD