Light seems to be filtering into the dark blue sky as the sun, still beyond the horizon, climbs steadily onward toward the day. This is a striking work by Tanaka Katsutoshi of Hagi’s Shinji Gama enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Hagi Kosai-ki. It is 52.5 dx 13.5 x 16 cm (21 x 5-1/2 x 6-1/2 inches) and is in perfect condition.
Tanaka Katsutoshi born in Ōnan, Shimane Prefecture, in 1958, the artist moved to Hagi in 1977 and began working in ceramics, studying under the late Yoshiga Daibi, a recipient of Japan’s Order of Cultural Merit, and Yoshiga Masao. In 1997, he established his own studio, Shinji-gama. His work was first selected for the Japan Contemporary Arts and Crafts Exhibition in 1983 and for the Nitten Exhibition in 1985, with continued selections thereafter. Among his numerous honors are the Yomiuri Shimbun Prize at the Kyushu-Yamaguchi Ceramics Exhibition in 1984 and again in 1993, the Contemporary Crafts Prize at the Japan Contemporary Arts and Crafts Exhibition in 1989, First Prize at the Nagasaki Ceramics Exhibition in 1995, the Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun Prize at the Kyushu-Yamaguchi Ceramics Exhibition in 1997, and the Yamaguchi Prefecture Cultural Promotion Encouragement Award in 2005. His work was also selected for the Forms of Chanoyu Exhibition in 2004.
