Sakiyama Takayuki: Chōtō; Listening to the Waves

Inspired by the rugged landscape of the nearby beaches of the Izu Penninsula, Sakiyama Takayuki creates powerful, elegant, functional works that meld the sensations of the seaside with a captivating sculptural component. The carved, undulating, linear patterning that seamlessly flows from outside to inside, mouth to foot, complements the softly flowing forms. Indeed, the works appear as if in perpetual motion, like the ebb and flow of the waves. To others, the effect has been compared to the beauty of raked Zen gardens. A special glaze created from the sand of his rough, local beaches in Izu serves to highlight the intricate spiraling lines of the carefully carved clay. Sakiyama states that these new works have been inspired by the strength and power in the movement of waves and the patterns that result from their force.

Sakiyama Takayuki (b. 1948) was born in Shizuoka Prefecture, where he studied ceramics as a young adult. He graduated from Osaka Art College, having worked with avant-garde ceramists, Hayashi Yasuo (b. 1928) and Yamada Hikaru (1923-2001). With mentors who favored form over function, Sakiyama was inspired to create functional vessels with a highly sculptural focus.  Indeed this artist sees function as his core challenge: how to make sculpturally significant works that retain their ties to functionality.

For this November show, his fourth with Joan B Mirviss LTD, Sakiyama Takayuki will be presenting new masterworks in a continuation of his Chōto series, this time titled, The Power of Waves; the exhibition will begin at The Salon Art + Design Fair 2017 and then will move to our gallery. His widely-published, sought-after works are featured in important international museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA; Philadelphia Museum of Art, PA; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, CA; Musée national de céramiques, Sèvres, France; National Museum of Scotland, UK; and Museum of Ceramic Art, Hyogo, Japan.

About JOAN B MIRVISS LTD

Joan B. Mirviss has been a distinguished expert in Japanese art specializing in prints, paintings, screens, and ceramics for forty years. She is the leading Western dealer in the field of modern and contemporary Japanese ceramics, and from her New York gallery on Madison Avenue, JOAN B MIRVISS LTD exclusively represents most of today’s top Japanese clay artists. As a distinguished, widely published, and highly respected specialist in her field, Mirviss has advised and built collections for many museums, major private collectors, and corporations. For further information or images, please call 212-799-4021 or email director@mirviss.com