26084 Living National Treasure Inoue Manji White porcelain gourd-shaped vase with engraved design

Height 27.6cm
Diameter 33.8cm


As a leading expert in potter's wheel molding, he studied the potter's wheel under Sakaida Kakiemon XII, and has led the way in Arita white porcelain with his outstanding skills and vast experience. In Japanese pottery, chance elements such as distortion and kiln changes are often incorporated and used to make the work appealing, but with white porcelain, perfection is required, with not even the slightest imperfection allowed, not only in form but also in the absence of pinholes or impurities.

This piece was created with the image of the melon plant in mind, and as the name "Urigata" suggests, it is shaped like a melon.

About the techniques of white porcelain
White porcelain is made by applying a transparent glaze to white clay made from powdered rock, the raw material for ceramics. It is a typical type of pottery from the Song Dynasty in China, and in Japan, production began in the Arita region of Kyushu in the early Edo period. Inoue Manji has been designated a Living National Treasure (holder of an Important Intangible Cultural Property) in the field of white porcelain. He uses high-quality natural pottery stone with few impurities and lovingly shapes his pieces on the potter's wheel.