Shiro Tsujimura: Oeuvres Ceramiques

Works from 1978 - 2006

September 16, 2009 - October 24, 2009

Yoshii Gallery New York is pleased to present, for the very first time in France, the art of Shiro Tsujimura. This exhibition presents a retrospective of works by this leading Japanese artist, from 1978 to 2006, allowing a veritable discovery of the vision, the art and the work of Tsujimura.

One of the leading ceramic artists of Japan, Tsujimura’s art and approach are founded on the beauty and purity of the Earth and its relationship and transformation with nature and fire. Tsujimura’s creative and artistic personality is anything but conventional. Inspired, in 1965, by a classic Ido tea bowl from the Japan Folk Crafts Museum, ancient Japanese and Korean techniques and traditions, and from his experience in the Zen temple of Sanshoji, Tsujimura’s work is based on a strict relationship with the past and his uncompromising individuality.

Self-taught, Tsujimura creates beautiful work despite his lack of formal artistic training, allowing a purity to his creations. The individuality of his art, and his own individuality as an artist can be summarized in his statement: “I have no teacher, and I take no apprentices.” Independent, he creates his own style and his own techniques, always linked, however, to the traditions of the past.

His studio, built in the mountains of Nara, is a mythical site and the birthplace of his creations. It is with the earth from his property that Tsujimura creates his own clay. He works it, fires it and lets it mature and age with the passing of time. Indeed, one can find buried ceramics, covered with vines and bamboo. These pieces that age with time illustrate the importance that Tsujimura places on the intangible quality of nature and the passing of time.

One of the greatest ceramic artists in Japan, Tsujimura is a perfectionist in his art and recognizes his obsession with achieving his goals. The exhibition illustrates the importance he places on spontaneity and dynamism, but also on rest and remaining Zen. Tsujimura is incontestable, the most capable artist to create works of art that retain the purity, and respect the traditions of Zen, Japanese and Korean ceramic art of the past.