Accession Number
1963/2.65

Title
Hagi ware flower vase

Artist(s)
Miwa Jusetsu

Object Creation Date
circa 1960

Medium & Support
stoneware with feldspar and ash glaze

Dimensions
14 9/16 in. x 3 1/8 in. x 3 9/16 in. ( 37 cm x 8 cm x 9 cm )

Credit Line
Gift of the artist

Label copy
Miwa Jusetsu
Japan, b. 1910
Vase
Showa period (1926–1989)
circa 1960
Stoneware with feldspar and ash glaze
Gift of the artist, 1963/2.65
Tea bowl
Showa period (1926–1989)
circa 1960
Stoneware with feldspar and ash glaze
On loan from John and Susanne Stephenson
The Hagi kiln was founded by potters brought to Japan in the late sixteenth century following the powerful feudal lord Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s invasions of Korea. In 1663, Miwa Kyûsetsu was summoned to be the official potter of the kiln and for over 400 years, the Miwa family has produced fine tea wares from it, continuing the Hagi tradition originated by their ancestor.
Miwa Jusetsu, head of the Miwa family from 1967 to 2003, is internationally known for his highly innovative ceramics. The rich, white glaze seen here, called Kyûsetsu white, was developed by Jusetsu and his brother, Miwa Kyûwa (1895–1981). The sharp, modern structure of the vase also has no precedent in earlier Hagi products.
(Turning Point exhibition, Spring 2010)
The Hagi kiln, on the westernmost shore of Honshû Island, was founded by a Korean potter—one of many skilled Korean craftsmen forcibly expatriated to Japan by Japanese armies that had invaded Korea in the late sixteenth century. Taking the name Miwa Kyûsetsu, he made tea wares for the exclusive use of the local military leader. For 400 years, his descendants have sustained the tradition of Hagi ware.
The current head of the family (known to many Michigan potters as Miwa Setsuo) is internationally known for his highly innovative ceramics, in which the Momoyama period legacy is more a vestigial memory than an active presence. The rich, white glaze seen here, known as "White Hagi," was developed only recently, by the previous head of the Miwa line. The self-consciously modern shape of the vase has no precedent in earlier Hagi products.
Exhibited in "Japanese Costumes & Ceramics, Past & Present," October 2001 February 2002. Maribeth Graybill, Senior Curator of Asian Art
The Hagi kiln was founded by Korean potters who relocated to Japan in the late sixteenth century. In 1663, the local daimyo (feudal lord) summoned their descendent, the first Miwa Kyûsetsu, to be the official potter. For 400 years, the Miwa family has produced fine tea wares, sustaining the Hagi tradition.
Miwa Jusetsu (the former head of the Miwa family) is internationally known for his highly innovative ceramics. The rich, white glaze seen here was developed only recently by Jusetsu and his brother, Miwa Kyûwa (1895–1981). The sharp, modern structure of the vase has no precedent in earlier Hagi products.
(Label for UMMA Japanese Gallery Opening Rotation, March 2009)
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The Hagi kiln was founded by potters brought to Japan in the late sixteenth century following the powerful feudal lord Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s invasions of Korea. In 1663, Miwa Kyûsetsu was summoned to be the official potter of the kiln and for over 400 years, the Miwa family has produced fine tea wares from it, continuing the Hagi tradition originated by their ancestor.
Miwa Jusetsu, head of the Miwa family from 1967 to 2003, is internationally known for his highly innovative ceramics. The rich, white glaze seen here, called Kyûsetsu white, was developed by Jusetsu and his brother, Miwa Kyûwa (1895–1981). The sharp, modern structure of the vase also has no precedent in earlier Hagi products.
(Turning Point exhibition, Spring 2010)

Subject matter
The vase is perhaps intended to have a single flower and to be displayed in a tea room alcove.

Physical Description
It is a vertically long, rectangular shaped vase. The body is slightly tilted; its four corners are shaved from the top to the bottom. The clay color is orange-yellow; the body is glazed with porous, milky white ash glaze. The bottom edge of the body and the bottom are unglazed. It has no foot.

Primary Object Classification
Ceramic

Primary Object Type
vase

Additional Object Classification(s)
Decorative Arts

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
flower (motif)
pottery (visual works)
vases