An amorphic vessel in sheer white seems to slowly melt over the earthy crag supporting it in this contemporary ceramic sculpture by Fukuzawa Ion enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Ishi no Ue Kaki (Vase on a rock). It is 6.5 x 7.5 x 8 cm (2-1/2 x 3 x 3 inches) and is in perfect condition, directly from the artist. According to Ion “along the Australian coastline at a sacred aboriginal sight looking at these bold, brown stone cliffs rising up from the sea, I was deeply moved.Those craggy rock faces find their way into my work…”
This series began with my graduation exhibition at the Design Institute.The different textures (the rugged base and the soft white vase) are fired separately and then glazed during the firing process to unite them. The white part is calculatedly made to match the base, expressing “the act of being artificially created to look natural.
Born in Tokyo in 1990, Fukuzawa Ion grew up shuffling between Japan and Sydney until he was 18 years old. The nature he was exposed to Down Under is an abundantly clear influence in his artwork.He studied at the University of New South Wales graduating with a BA in Ceramic Design in 2013. Post graduation he made a living producing vessels for restaurants for several years however longed for a more expressionist craft. He subsequently enrolled in the Tajimi Design Institute, graduating in 2020. Since his work has been exhibited in both his home countries of Japan and Australia, as well as featured in Greece, Italy, China and the United States.
