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Knowledge about Japanese art

In this section we explain the background of Japanese art and craft traditions: from ceramic traditions such as Raku, Bizen and Hagi-yaki to painting techniques, the tea ceremony and aesthetic concepts such as Wabi-Sabi or Mono no Aware. The articles put into context what shapes the works of our artists stylistically and historically.

Shikishi board with painting of a beauty in kimono

Shikishi – The Small Stage for the Essential

Square, edged in gold, uncorrectable: the shikishi is the most intimate format in Japanese calligraphy and ink painting.

Fuchin decorative weight on a kakemono hanging scroll

Fuchin – The Silent Guardians of the Kakemono

Small but indispensable: fuchin weight the lower ends of a kakemono and ensure that the hanging scroll hangs calmly and smoothly.

Enso kakemono: Zen circle in ink painting with accompanying calligraphy inscription

The Enso Symbol – A Circle, a Breath, an Entire Universe

A single brushstroke, never corrected: in Zen art, the Enso is regarded as a symbol of enlightenment, emptiness, and the beauty of the present moment.

Bizen Ware – When Fire and Clay Alone Complete the Form

Bizen Ware – When Fire and Clay Alone Complete the Form

Unglazed, unmistakable, thousands of years old: Bizen-yaki is created from clay, flame, and ash alone – one of the Six Ancient Kilns of Japan.

Tea bowl made of Kyoto ware with bright yellow glaze and hand-painted floral and calligraphic decoration

Kyoto-yaki – The Ceramics of a City, Not a Single Kiln

Not a kiln style, but an address: Kyō-yaki is the ceramics of the old capital – the place where the court and tea masters were the most discerning customers.

The Takasago pines as a symbol of marital fidelity

The Takasago Legend – Two Pines, One Eternal Love

An old married couple, two pines separated by the sea: The Takasago Legend is still regarded today as the Japanese emblem of eternal, enduring love.

Hand-Formed Raku-yaki Tea Bowl

Raku-yaki – The Hand-Formed Tea Bowl

Formed without a potter's wheel, fired quickly and shock-cooled: since Sen no Rikyū, Raku-yaki has been regarded as Japan's most highly esteemed tea bowl.

Crafts and motifs from the Japanese Edo period

The Edo Period – 250 Years of Peace and the Flowering of Japanese Craftsmanship

Cut off from the world and yet more creative than ever before: the Edo period (1603–1868) shaped ceramics, painting, and tea culture into the present day.

Guinomi made of Oribe ware with copper-green flowing glaze and incised zigzag pattern

Oribe-yaki – The Green Rebellion of Japanese Tea Ceramics

Copper-green running glaze, dented rims, and patterns as if from textile printing: Oribe-yaki deliberately broke with the quiet aesthetic of Sen no Rikyū around 1600.

Heisei Era Landscape with Bridge and Waterfall Kakemono Honshi

The Heisei Era – Between the Bursting Bubble and Quiet Reflection

Economic bubble, natural disasters, and a new appreciation for craftsmanship: the Heisei era (1989–2019) left a lasting mark on modern Japan.

Chawan made of Tobe ware with amber-reddish glaze and black inner rim

Tobe-yaki – How Whetstone Waste Became Everyday Porcelain

Porcelain was made from the rubble of whetstone quarries: Tobe ware is thick-walled, robust, and painted in blue and white – tableware for everyday use.

Tomobako authentic signed paulownia box with the potter's stamp

Tomobako – The Wooden Box That Certifies Origin and Value

More than packaging: the tomobako made of paulownia wood bears the artist's signature and seal and serves as proof of authenticity for Japanese art objects.

Tea bowl made of Tada ware with a yellow-green celadon glaze, fine crackle, and an incised dragonfly motif

Tada-yaki – The Almost Vanished Celadon of Iwakuni

A green glaze with a fine network of crackles and a kiln of which hardly anything remains: Tada-yaki is one of the quietest chapters of Japanese ceramics.

Dragon in traditional Japanese art

Dragons in Japanese Art – Rulers over Water and Sky

Mostly wingless, benevolent, with water instead of fire: the Japanese dragon Ryū embodies power, wisdom, and protection – a timeless kakemono motif.

Shino-yaki tea bowl with white glaze

Shino-yaki – Japan's First White Glaze and Its Quiet Poetry

Thick white glaze, fine pores, and delicate fire marks: Shino ware is considered Japan's first white-glazed ceramics – born in the world of the tea ceremony.

Traditional Japanese ink painting

Traditional Japanese Painting – Between Ink, Silk, and Quiet Suggestion

From Sumi-e ink painting to the gold-adorned Rinpa school: an overview of the great styles and principles of Nihonga, the art of Japanese painting.

Arita ware plate with floral bird motif in Imari style

Arita-yaki – The Birth of Japanese Porcelain

Discovered in Arita in 1616: how a find of kaolin on Kyūshū heralded the beginning of Japanese porcelain art – and enchanted the princely courts of Europe.

Handcrafted sake cup with glossy reddish-brown glaze and light glaze drip over coarse body

Mashiko-yaki – Where Japanese Everyday Tableware Became Art

Coarse clay, thick glazes, heavy everyday tableware: it was precisely here that Japanese utilitarian ceramics became an aesthetic program in the 20th century.

The Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin) on the Treasure Ship Takarabune

The Seven Lucky Gods – A Treasure Ship Full of Wishes

Ebisu, Daikoku, Benten, and four more: according to legend, the Shichifukujin travel to the people on their treasure ship Takarabune at New Year.

Zen Buddhist art and calligraphy

Zen Buddhism in Japanese Art – The Power of Emptiness

A single brushstroke, an empty circle, a meditating monk: how Zen Buddhism shaped ink painting, calligraphy, and Japanese aesthetics.

Nocturnal Robber Meiji Kakemono Honshi

The Meiji Era – When Japan Opened Up to the World

From an isolated feudal realm to an industrial nation: the Meiji era (1868–1912) opened Japan up to the world – and the world discovered Japanese art.

Chawan made of Seto ware with very characteristic wabi sabi pattern in signed wooden box

Seto-yaki – The Ceramics That Became the Word for Ceramics

So influential that "Setomono" became the Japanese word for ceramics itself: Seto-yaki was for centuries Japan's only center of glazed pottery.

Close-up of a handcrafted tea bowl (Chawan) made of stoneware with a glaze shifting from earthy brown to ochre, gray glaze streaks, and a grainy surface

Kasama-yaki – The Pottery Town With No Fixed Style

Iron-rich granite clay, rust-red kaki glaze, and around three hundred workshops united by nothing but their location: Kasama-yaki is Japan's open ceramics tradition.

Japanese tea bowl made of Imari porcelain with hand-painted red flowers, green leaves, and a golden flower on a cream-white, finely speckled background

Imari-yaki – The Porcelain That Conquered Europe's Royal Courts

Cobalt blue, iron red, and gold: how a small port on Kyūshū gave its name to a porcelain that Augustus the Strong had collected by the stack in Dresden.

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