Ken Akaji

1938, Kanazawa, Japan

foto: Tomoko Akaji

Even though the work of Akaji Ken is clearly influenced by Japanese tradition, he has developed a completely unique and distinctive style.
Akaji Ken has become known through his red overglazed objects and his subtle and consistently applied decorations.
He first creates an object with a smooth white glaze. After this has been heated, he adds another, coarser, coloured layer on top of the glaze and once more the object is heated.
Akaji's shapes stem directly from Japanese tradition. He produces sake cups, stackable boxes and sushi dishes, whose shapes hardly differ from every-day Japanese utensils. However, through his decoration techniques these objects transcend their daily functions, even though they can still be used.

At the age of 16, Akaji Ken (1938, Kanazawa, Japan) started as an apprentice with a master who taught him the distinctive overglazing technique.
When he was 27 he opened his own atelier where he produced artwork in the Japanese tradition. Still, he was looking for new possibilities in ceramics and took part in the crafts movement, which championed a modern approach towards ceramics.
Since 1981 Akaji has been focusing on red overglazed works, on which the red decoration is applied through simple brush strokes.

At the previous exhibition Akaji Ken displayed monumental objects.

At the new exposition at Carla Koch he once more displays a series of boxes. Again, intriguing decorations on the outside with heavy brush strokes in red overglaze. Very delicate decorations on the inside of these objects. But we also find multicoloured objects in this show.
The exquisite boxes are derived from traditional brush boxes and food boxes. An intriguing translation of the traditional shapes to contemporary objets d'art.
Once again, Akaji Ken proves himself as one of the masters of contemporary Japanese ceramics, which is obviously rooted in the overwhelming Japanese tradition.