Back in
the mid-80's, my wife and I became acquainted first hand with the works of both
Morino Taimei and Miyashita Zenji (1939-2012) through Joan Mirviss in New York;
since that time, the two have remained among our favorite non-traditional
ceramic artists. Sadly, Miyashita Zenji passed away this year, his absence will
certainly leave a void in the field of sculptural ceramics of which he was
among the best. The works, based on what would appear to be a simple idea, was
an achievement in technical skill as well as a mastery of form. His unique sensibility
brought his ceramics into motion, animated with various hues and all of those
crisp, torn edges, stacked one on top of another creating a narrative that
brings the viewer, round and round the vessel.
Illustrated
is a close-up of a vase form by Miyashita Zenji that is like looking into a
distant landscape of row after row of mountains at dusk, the starlight barely illuminating
the ranges in varying hues of blue. I am reminded of the landscape paintings of
Fu Baoshi, though there is so many
things one can see in Miyashita's work, the possibilities are endless.
"After
you cross the mountain, more mountains." An Indian Proverb
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