Memories of a House
Hayashi Yasuo Solo Exhibition
January 22 – February 5, 2026
18 East 64th Street, Ste 1F

Dai Ichi Arts, Ltd. is honored to present a solo exhibition of the modern ceramic master Hayashi Yasuo (b. 1928), one of the most pivotal figures of the first post-war generation that shaped contemporary Japanese ceramics. This exhibition marks the artist’s final overseas solo presentation and brings together an intimate selection of works spanning from 1969 to the present, tracing key moments across an extraordinary artistic practice that has extended over eight decades.

Born in Kyoto in 1928, Hayashi Yasuo came of age during profound upheaval. Drafted as a kamikaze pilot in World War II, he survived due to the war’s sudden end, an experience that deeply influenced his life and work. In the immediate post-war years, he associated with leading cultural figures, including Noguchi Isamu, and exhibited alongside him in Paris in 1947.

That year, Hayashi co-founded Shikō-kai, Kyoto’s first avant-garde sculptural ceramic movement, which held early exhibitions of obuje-yaki—kiln-fired objects that subverted Japan’s vessel-based ceramic tradition.

This exhibition features works from Hayashi’s early period, alongside rare examples from the 1960s and 1970s, including biomorphic forms inspired by Surrealist Max Ernst, noted for their sensuous contours and rich red surfaces. Also included are pieces from his ongoing “Memories of a House” series, reflecting his wartime night flights over Kyoto and the psychological impressions of mortality they left.

At 97, Hayashi continues to create, including his “Scenes of Namie Town” series, remembering the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku tsunami and reaffirming his belief in art as a vessel for humanity, memory, and history.

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