Kondō Takahiro (Japanese, born 1958), Reflection: TK Self Portrait, 2010, glazed porcelain, 19 1/16 × 6 3/16 in. (48.5 × 15.7 cm); Carol and Jeffrey Horvitz Collection, © Kondō Takahiro, (Photo: Richard P. Goodbody and John Morgan)

During this Asia Week, be sure to visit the Brooklyn Museum’s spotlight exhibit, Porcelains in the Mist: The Kondō Family of Ceramicists. You may also view more of Kondō Takahiro’s work at Joan B Mirviss LTD in their current group show,  Eternal Partnership: Japanese Ceramics in Blue & White.

Brooklyn Museum
Museum Spotlight: Porcelains in the Mist: The Kondō Family of Ceramicists
December 8, 2023 – December 8, 2024
Arts of Japan, 2nd Floor

This porcelain head, a self-portrait, is glazed in shades of blue and covered with metallic droplets called “silver mist,” or gintekisai. The term, like the secret technique that produces the effect, was invented by ceramicist Kondō Takahiro (born 1958). Based in Kyoto, Japan, he carries on a legacy of innovation in ceramic art. For the last one hundred years, Kondō Takahiro and his father Kondō Hiroshi (1936–2012), grandfather Kondō Yūzō (1902–1985), and uncle Kondō Yutaka (1932–1983) have broken free of centuries-old traditions to pursue original, individual expression.

Porcelains in the Mist brings together sixty-one pieces that celebrate the Kondō family’s innovations and talents. Their early creations range from freehand-painted vases to pure-white jars. Most of the works on view are by Takahiro, who often pairs his “mist,” which he describes as “water born from fire,” with dramatic shapes and textures. Several of these powerful porcelains reflect his personal responses to monumental events, particularly the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan.

To learn more, click here.