Set of Ceramic Items for a Tea Ceremony

The collection of ceramics from the Far East, assembled by the painter Raphaël Collin and acquired by the museum in 1917, reveals the fascination that enlightened enthusiasts of the late 19th century felt for Japanese stoneware. Displayed in the West at the Universal Exposition of 1878, these original products had a profound influence on the potters of the Art Nouveau movement. From the 1880s onward, with the help of his Japanese students, Raphaël Collin developed an outstanding collection of nearly 450 Chinese and Korean ceramic pieces and Japanese stoneware items.

These vases, bowls, incense boxes, flower vases, and water jugs were used in the tea ceremony (chanoyu), which developed with the influence of Zen Buddhism and was codified in the 16th century. These stoneware items were produced in the Mino region in the old kilns of Bizen, Seto, and Shigaraki, and later in Kyoto, Hagi, Takatori, and Karatsu, and were made from a sandstone clay, sometimes coated with a glaze that varied in thickness. The shapes are simple and often asymmetric. The decoration allows the underlying clay and some firing flaws to be seen. Tea ceremony aesthetes consider those characteristics to emanate from true beauty.