Wakao Toshisada 若尾 利貞 (b. 1933) Nezumi Shino small plates, set of 6, stoneware, 5/8 × 4 3/4 in. (1.5 × 12 cm), with signed wood box, signed artist’s mark at base

The Art of Living
Fine Japanese Ceramics & Art for Dining, Kaiseki, and Chanoyu
October 29 – December 17, 2026
18 East 64th St, Ste 1F, NYC

Dai Ichi Arts, Ltd. is pleased to present The Art of Living, an autumn exhibition of modern and contemporary Japanese ceramics and art for dining, Kaiseki, and Chanoyu by celebrated makers.

The celebrated ceramic artist Kitaōji Rosanjin famously described tableware as “cuisine’s kimono.” Like a kimono, utsuwa (器)—a term meaning vessels, commonly used to refer to tableware—frames and complements what it holds, enhancing the food without competing with it. A vessel’s color, shape, texture, and decoration can make a dish appear more vibrant, delicate, or inviting. And because many Japanese dishes are served in portions small enough to hold, the experience is especially intimate: diners engage with the vessel as well as the food, bringing both close to the body.

This close attention to tableware is especially evident in Sadō: particularly Kaiseki and Chanoyu. In each, vessels are chosen with care for the food, the occasion, the guest, and the season. A meal unfolds through a succession of bowls, plates, trays, sake cups, and containers for sweets or water, each contributing to the rhythm of hospitality. A carefully chosen vessel can express what words cannot: that the host has considered the moment, the season, and the person gathered at the table.

The Japanese table brings together binary qualities: function and beauty, nature and craftsmanship, individuality and harmony, tradition and everyday life. A ceramic vessel carries food, but it can also evoke the season, reveal the maker’s character, bear traces of its own history, and express the intentions of the person who selected it.

Celebrating the art of functional ceramics by celebrated contemporary Japanese artists, our forthcoming exhibition The Art of Living is presented in three parts. The first explores everyday dining through tea cups, platters, bowls, and modern style Japanese tableware. The second turns to kaiseki and the art of the seasonal table. The third enters the tea room, where tea bowls, water jars, and flower vases shape the setting for chanoyu. Together, these three parts reveal how Japanese ceramics bring beauty, meaning, and seasonal tastes to the art of living.

They look forward to welcoming you soon!

To learn more, click here.