Born in Saga Prefecture in 1960.
Cultivates an interest in the processes (workings) of “Life” such as animals and nature from an early age.
1987
Born and raised near the home of Arita ware porcelain, he sets off on a quest to see whether it would be possible to express his own image of “Life” in ceramic painting with Arita ware techniques. Visiting numerous Arita ware workshops, he is repeatedly told, “No, that’s impossible,” until finally one man, the world-renowned ceramic artist Yuki Hayama, expresses interest in his vision and takes him on to work under him. He is finally able to begin his study of Tosaiga ceramic painting.
1990
As a result of 3 years of continuous research, he succeeds in expressing colors that had never before been produced in Arita ware.
This technique involves a process of painting and firing over 10 times to produce vivid colors, defying conventional Arita ware techniques which were limited to 3 to 4 firings. That same year, he opens Atelier Imagine in Yamauchi-cho, Takeo City, Saga Prefecture and begins creating Tosaiga ceramic paintings.
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Cultivates an interest in the processes (workings) of “Life” such as animals and nature from an early age.
1987
Born and raised near the home of Arita ware porcelain, he sets off on a quest to see whether it would be possible to express his own image of “Life” in ceramic painting with Arita ware techniques. Visiting numerous Arita ware workshops, he is repeatedly told, “No, that’s impossible,” until finally one man, the world-renowned ceramic artist Yuki Hayama, expresses interest in his vision and takes him on to work under him. He is finally able to begin his study of Tosaiga ceramic painting.
1990
As a result of 3 years of continuous research, he succeeds in expressing colors that had never before been produced in Arita ware.
This technique involves a process of painting and firing over 10 times to produce vivid colors, defying conventional Arita ware techniques which were limited to 3 to 4 firings. That same year, he opens Atelier Imagine in Yamauchi-cho, Takeo City, Saga Prefecture and begins creating Tosaiga ceramic paintings.
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Kazuhisa Kusaba
Tosaiga Ceramic Painting Artist
Tosaiga Ceramic Painting Artist
What is “freedom”? I question freedom.
In Japanese tea ceremony and martial arts, the development process of the “forms” is expressed in the 3 Chinese characters 守 (to protect as in maintain tradition), 破 (to break as in break the rules) and 離 (to separate as in achieve independence).
My approach to Tosaiga ceramic painting was the same.
Following Arita’s traditions, but without getting stuck in them, how do I break those traditions? And once I’ve moved away from them, what is freedom...?
And again, what is my own “freedom”?
That is one of the things I question through my work.
Looking for the answer, I return to my work.
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