Millions of people around the world have seen the work of Tokolo Asao, yet few would be able to produce his name or identify a single project to which he’s contributed. Tokolo — and that’s the spelling he prefers for a surname usually romanized as “Tokoro” — is the man behind the distinctive indigo checkered…

Readers of Japan Living Arts are invited to attend special performances of Noh and Kyogen at the Oyama Afuri Shrine on Mt. Oyama in Kanagawa Prefecture.  On Oct. 2 and 3, 2019, top actors from the Kanze School of Noh — including Living National Treasures — will share their art outdoors, as Noh was originally…

Tai Gallery was humming with enthusiasm for the artist presentation of one of the masters of Japanese basketry, Tanabe Chikuunsai IV. As guests found their seats, they could view a lively stop frame animation showing this revered artist and his apprentices constructing a huge bamboo installation at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. A…

“Alive, in each and every one of us, are countless individuals whose lifetime experiences, joys, sorrows, angers, doubts, and so forth have been successively passed down from one generation to the next. The physical form I assume now is but the fruit of what I’ve inherited from those who have existed before me. What, you…

“In that instant I knew that Kyoto had installed itself inside me much deeper than mere fancy. No other place I knew took me back so far and so deep, to what seemed like a better time and self. And as I wandered back in the dying light, lit up with a sense of rapture…

Japanese lacquer – urushi – is one of the wonders of traditional Japanese craft. From the moment of its discovery by the West, with the arrival of Portuguese traders in the mid-16th century, it was sought by royal, aristocratic and wealthy families in Europe and the United States. Inevitably expensive due to the time, patience…

The work of Seiho KIBE is currently being shown in his second U.S. solo at Tai Modern Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico, until July 13, 2019. Ten years ago, Seiho KIBE had his first solo show in the United States at TAI Gallery in Santa Fe. Now, he is returning to show his new…

Japan’s relationship with tattoos is notoriously complicated. Even at the height of their popularity during the Edo period, the samurai class made attempts to ban these creative decorations that depicted designs that were considered subversive. Because of their popularity, the bans were ineffective and so the culture of horimono — literally “engraving” — remained strong for…

Two years ago, at the age of 58, potter Zenzo Fukushima was tapped to become what is commonly known as a “Living National Treasure.” The title, one of Japan’s highest honors, is often misunderstood to be recognition of an individual’s superior accomplishment. In fact, it is a directive from the nation to preserve something that…

The solo exhibition of celebrated artist, Fujikasa Satoko will be held at Joan B Mirviss LTD. May 1 – June 21, 2019 Joan B Mirviss LTD 39 E 78 Street, New York, NY 10075 Among sophisticated collectors and informed curators, the single most sought-after Japanese clay artist is the extraordinarily gifted Fujikasa Satoko. Both visually…