Everything Begins "From Copying"

The 18th-century English pewter plate, the object of replication, is a very thin piece measuring 240mm in diameter with no height, yet it has a wide rim. For Shiro Hamanaka, who recreated this in porcelain, it must have been an immense struggle to control warping.

Yoshiyuki Kato's work uses a technique called "kuri-mono," where forms are carved from a block of wood using tools like chisels, rather than "hiki-mono" (turning). Therefore, a round plate composed of concentric circles may not be his preferred form. This thinness presented a battle against warping for the woodwork as well.

Yoshinori Nishimura reportedly traveled extensively in search of materials and woodworkers capable of realizing this project. Even with the same color of lacquer, he varied the finishes, resulting in pieces with diverse expressions.

Kato's path to woodworking followed his time as a temple carpenter, Nishimura is the third-generation lacquer artist from Kyoto, and Hamanaka is the second-generation heir to a Hagi ware kiln. All three have masterfully captured the dignified form of the pewter plate and further developed it in diverse ways. We hope you will appreciate the fascination of seeing identical forms in different materials and the richness of variations that have emerged from it.

"From Copying"
Period: On display until Sunday, June 29, 2014
Hours: 13:00–18:00, Open daily during the exhibition period
Saruyama
Wako Mansion 101, 3-12-46 Moto-Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Tel. 03-3401-5935
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