26338 Living National Treasure Manji Inoue White Porcelain Round Jar ①

Height: 17.0 cm
Diameter: 16.0 cm

As a leading expert in pottery wheel forming, Manji trained under the 12th Kakiemon Sakaida, learning the craft and driving Arita's white porcelain with his exceptional skill and extensive experience. While Japanese pottery often embraces accidental elements like distortions and kiln changes as part of a piece's charm, white porcelain demands absolute perfection, where not a single flaw—be it in form, pinholes, or impurities—is tolerated.

As he himself stated, "The greatest beauty of white porcelain lies in its form," and indeed, this piece's shaping accentuates the beauty of white porcelain. Through his unceasing dedication to white porcelain, the apex of the curve, the opening of the mouth, and the height of the "rounded form" have evolved with each passing day, imbuing the piece with an even more beautiful and dignified elegance through its meticulously perfected balance.

This is a masterpiece by Manji, who mastered the monochrome world of white porcelain in Arita, a region with a rich tradition of polychrome enamels such as aka-e and Nabeshima ware.