44. Yuji Uedaうえだゆうじ

 Yuji Ueda was born in 1975 in Shigaraki and lives and works in Kamiasanomiya also in Shigaraki. Shigaraki is an area famous for special type of ceramics, Shigaraki yaki, which belongs to one of the six ancient kilns in Japan. A distinctive feature of Shigaraki ware is that it is made of coarse earth that turns pink or other shades of red with scarlet or brown overtones during the firing process. When the pottery is buried in ashes by the complete burning of wood in the kiln, the lower part takes on a rusty glaze on the scorched parts of Shigaraki ware that is highly appreciated for its simple warmth and rich expressiveness. Yuji Ueda introduction to ceramics began early; As a child he played among the remains of old kilns, and at home ceramics were a regular part of the family tea business. After studying with acclaimed ceramicist Yasuhisa Kohyama in 2002 and first learning about life as a ceramic artist, he began experimenting with glazes and eventually built his own "anagama" kiln, a traditional cave kiln. Since then, Yuji Ueda has developed a very unique aesthetic of unorthodox forms with unique methods, such as using large lumps of feldspar and incorporating fractures as a beauty created by the ground itself. It resulted in works with great variations in surface, shape, color and texture and executed in all sizes, ranging from very small okimonos to massive sculptures two meters high. His work can therefore be seen in small galleries and ceramics stores, but numerous key galleries and museums such as Galerie Perrotin in Paris and art fairs in New York, Los Angeles and Hong Kong also have featured Yuji Ueda's work in the past.