I went to Fukuoka on the weekend and had a nice walk around the Asian Art Museum. There was a beautiful sandy river nearby (it was low tide I think) along with so many curious buildings and shops. I'd love to come back and check this city out some more when I have the chance.
I had a chat this morning when I was out walking with a few local people around where I'm staying. I was explaining why I'm in Arita when one guy said to me, "I'll lend you some design books" and popped into his house and returned with two very delicate looking notebooks filled with drawings - one was Meiji Period and was 136 years old, and the other was 125 years old. He said, "just put them back in my postbox tomorrow" and I said "I'll definitely knock on your door". Arita is an amazing place!
My Asialink Arts Residency Project is supported by Arts Queensland
I spent some lovely time in a nice little cafe in Arita on Friday afternoon - this is a great place if you are a fan of handmade wooden cutlery and plates - all made by the owner's husband (no photo, sorry!).
We also took a lovely drive on the weekend to Sasebo and Karatsu - it was a rainy weekend and that created even more special and mysterious views.
The rustic walls that can be found throughout Arita are made of old kiln brick called "Tonbaibei" - they're very beautiful, and the ones outside our guesthouse are filled with bees!
This is my work space at Happy Lucky Site this week. It's lovely to be able to see outside to the beautiful Spring weather. I dropped by Arita dam this evening on my way home - the water was a beautiful colour and it was such a peaceful place. I loved it!!
I feel like I've already learnt a lot after spending just a couple of days in Kourakugama. Tokunaga-san and Shin Koyama have introduced me to a number of impressive local people in Arita...I'm excited!
I'm very very happy to be back in Arita to start my Asialink Artist Residency with funding support from Arts Queensland! It's still quite chilly here, but the cherry blossoms are nearly over and the new buds of spring are popping out. It was great to see Tokunaga-san from Happy lucky Site Arita today and to talk about how we're going to make the artist residency meaningful.
This is an Asialink Arts Residency Project supported by Arts Queensland.
An exciting exhibition is on at Moss Green Gallery in Melbourne at the moment. Curated by a great ceramic artist Prue Venables, the show features a beautiful selection of works from 25 artists and is a tribute to Janet Mansfield OAM who sadly passed away last year. I'm very honoured to be part of this special exhibition marking Janet's significant contribution to Australia's ceramic culture. Please drop by if you are around.
I'm really excited to share that I've been selected to join Asialink's Artist Residency Program in 2014 and will be spending 12 weeks in Arita in Kyushu Japan! My host will be Happy Lucky Site - I can't wait to explore some exciting new projects with them and to meet more of the Arita ceramics community and share ideas! These are a few of the pieces I created during a very short visit to Arita in November last year.
This is an Asialink Arts Residency Project supported by Arts Queensland.
I've recently returned from a really exciting trip to Arita in Kyushu. Arita is famous for porcelain - in fact it's said to be the birthplace of porcelain in Japan. And seeing as how I'm Japanese and all about porcelain - I thought it would be the perfect place for me to visit. I spent almost a week at Happy Lucky Site Kouraku Gama where I was able to explore some new ideas and techniques and meet some great people. My good friend Shin Koyama and his lovely wife Cory were wonderful hosts during my stay too and introduced me to so many interesting and kind people (and some great food!). It was only a short trip, but it's filled my head with ideas...which is exactly what I was hoping it would do. I'm really looking forward to returning to Arita in 2014 if I can.
I was very happy to be invited by artisan to take part in an exhibition opportunity at the BCM Crucible Gallery where my pieces are displayed alongside the beautiful work of artist Phoebe McDonald. Such a clever pairing by artisan's emerging curator Miriam Carter (thank you Miriam!). Take a look if you're in the Valley in the next few days as the show will wrap up soon! (Photo credits: Miriam Carter)
I'm very excited to be part of the Redcliffe City Art Gallery's annual acquisitive award this year and to show my work (pictured above) in such esteemed company. The show runs from Thursday 7 November until Tuesday 17 December 2013. I hope you can make it if you're in the area. And even if you're not, it's the perfect excuse to go for a drive to a beautiful part of the world!
I'm really looking forward to being part of the first group show at my lovely friend Kylie Johnson's paper boat press gallery in Ashgrove, Brisbane opening this Friday night, 26 July 2013. All of the artist are making a collection of small works...in Kylie's words:
"The show is based around my poem 'in my hand i had a kingdom, in my hand i had yours' and I have asked 14 artists to create work that is able to fit in a hand. I hope you can make it along to see some small beautiful thoughtful tiny magical work of the artists shown..."
It should be a beautiful show so please come along if you're in the area!
"Works in this exhibition demonstrate how creative professionals are capable of challenging the way that everyday objects are understood. The works suggest answers to complex problem sets like overuse of materials, resources and energy in our lives....Subsequently, the works represent a blueprint or prototype for how we can improve the way in which domestic or urban environments are planned and perceived."
