By NHK Educational
The Mark of Beauty : NHK Educational
Japan's first porcelain was created four hundred years ago in Arita-cho, Saga prefecture. Porcelain made in Arita-cho and the surrounding area is known as Arita ware. Arita ware ceramics are still made today.
Izumiyama Kaolin Quarry (The first site discovered in Japan for kaolin, the raw material used to make porcelain clay.)NHK Educational
【Arita Ware】PrologueNHK Educational
Dish with flattened rim, decorated with cloud,a rabbit and characters design in sprayed blue and white.Imari ware.Edo period.Early 17th century.Original Source: Toguri Museum
Original makers
In the early days, Arita potters made simple blue-and-white sometsuke pieces.
Bottle, decorated with plum tree and landscape design in underglaze blue. Imari ware.Edo period. Early 17th century.Original Source: Toguri Museum
The sometsuke pieces of the initial period were covered with lots of glaze and were thickly potted.
The secret of Kakiemon "white"
The Kakiemon style—in which milky white pottery is decorated with colored overglaze enamels, including red—appeared in the latter half of the 17th century.
Before the development of Kakiemon, porcelain from this region had a slight bluish color. Porcelains made in the Kakiemon style, however, have a soft, warm milky white color. The vivid colors are highlighted against the white background.
Left: Foliate dish with pine, bamboo, plum, and bird design. Kakiemon ware; porcelain with underglaze blue and overglaze enamels. Collection of the Kakiemon Kiln. Right: Dish with pine, bamboo, plum, and bird design. Meissen ware; porcelain with underglaze blue and overglaze enamels. Collection of the Kakiemon Kiln.Original Source: Kakiemon Kiln
The Kakiemon style also strongly influenced the production of European porcelain. Many copies of Kakiemon ceramics were made in Europe, including Kakiemon imitations made at Germany's Meissen kilns.
【Arita Ware】Imari ware in Kakiemon styleOriginal Source: Kakiemon Kiln
Kinrande is a technique in which gold is incorporated into the colorful overglaze enamel patterns on white porcelain. Lavishly decorated kinrande-style porcelains began to be manufactured around the end of the 17th century. Many of these were exported.
Further techincal refinement and sophistication
Nabeshima ware, which was the finest quality porcelain, was made only for the domestic Japanese market. The Nabeshima clan gathered together top artisans and clustered them in the mountain village of Okawachiyama, so that their production methods would not be disclosed. There they produced ceramics using the most advanced techniques and the highest quality materials.
Nabeshima ware was made first and foremost for presentation to the Tokugawa clan, the family of the shogunate. For this reason, much money and effort went into its production, with no regard for profitability.
Dish,decorated with cherry blossom,brushwood fence and waves design in underglaze blue and overglaze enamels.Nabeshima ware.Edo period.Late 17th - early 18th century.Original Source: Toguri Museum
【Arita Ware】Nabeshima wareOriginal Source: Imaemon
Cooperation:
Toguri Museum
Kakiemon Kiln
Imaemon Kiln
Music by yuichi FUJISAWA with Hiraku Yamamoto(Nabowa)
Supervised by
Maezaki Shinya, Associate Professor, Kyoto Women's University
M. Rinne, Kyoto National Museum
Produced by NHK Educational Corporation
©NHK2017
