Winter Antiques Show 2016: A Benefit for East Side House Settlement

The official website for Winter Antiques Show 2016 is now available to view by clicking here.

Katō Yasukage (1964-2012) was the fourteenth generation in an ancestry of ceramists, whose beginnings date back to the Momoyama period. His exposure to clay began at the age of fifteen when he was sent to Bizen to study ceramics and woodfiring techniques with Yamamoto Toshu (1906-1994), a Living National Treasure. Soon after, he broadened his knowledge of ceramics through his studies at Nagoya University. Upon returning to his hometown in Gifu, Katō had acquired a fresh perspective on ceramics, blending traditional techniques with striking, new, contemporary forms. Undoubtedly, the rich, copper-green oribe and orange-peel textured shino glazes that adorn his artworks are firmly rooted in his family’s Mino background. Katō’s forms are given a distinct vivacity through his penchant for twisting design, textured with banded incisions. Despite his untimely death, Katō solidified his place as one of the foremost talents, not only within his own lineage, but also throughout Japan.

Joan B Mirviss LTD is honored to open its fourth solo exhibition of Katō Yasukage’s work, graciously provided by his mother from the family collection, at the 62nd annual Winter Antiques Show. Joan first met Katō Yasukage (then named Shōji) at his inaugural show at Takashimaya Nihonbashi, Tokyo in 1999. Amazed at the artist’s mastery of throwing, glazing, and firing techniques, she made several visits to his home and studio over the course of thirteen years, introducing Katō’s unique style to western audiences. The instigation of this successful relationship resulted in three sold-out exhibitions of Katō Yasukage’s ceramics, two in New York and one in Santa Fe. Today, many of Katō’s works now reside in prestigious American institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Asian Art Museum, San Francisco and Philadelphia Museum of Art, among others. Through these collections and others around the world, Katō Yasukage's legacy is sure to continue long into the future.