Illustrated is a wonderful little saidei
(layered clay) kogo by the late Miyashita Zenji (1939-2012) created by building
up layers upon layers of colored clay on his ceramic canvas. Having grown up
around clay, his father Miyashita Zenju (1901-1968) was a veteran porcelain
potter and glaze magician, Zenji discovered his saidei technique and literally
wrapped his evocative and creative forms in his multi-colored surfaces and
though this kogo is simple in form it creates a lyrical surface that speaks to
distant and exotic landscapes to destination far off both real and imagined.
Miyashita's use of color and texture in balance on his forms illustrates a
potter's intimate knowledge of his clay, form and material as well as an
evolving aesthetic as his works and ideas matured. Though small in scale and at
times easy to overlook, this saidei kogo is an excellent and mature example of
Miyashita's oeuvre and speaks about a purity and honesty of a potter's vision.
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