From aspiring lawyer to automatic washing machine salesman to master potter, life has been an interesting but rocky road for Shigaraki ceramist Kanzaki Shiho .
The road is smoother now than the time when he was disowned by his father for choosing the potter's wheel over a lawyer's robe, or when he was swindled out of some pots and money at an early stage in his career.
It was his faith and passion for Azuchi-Momoyama Period Shigaraki and Iga pottery that held his heart steadfast through the bumpy times and he has succeeded in creating some stunning works that have earned him a loyal following around the world.
Kanzaki is showing his pottery in Okayama City at Tenmaya department store's fifth floor gallery until Oct. 30, 2000.
Kanzaki has a way of putting that stormy period of his life into perspective, though in a very humble way.
"The truth is," he said in an interview with American potter Dick Lehman, "that because of those encounters I am what I am now. The tree that overcomes severe weather reveals its true beauty. It is the same for people."
Kanzaki has focused on the lessons that he learned and come out of that period without bitterness or self-pity. We all are the better for it: His pots are like jewels thrown down from the heavens.
In the past I held a Kanzaki piece in my hand and considered it as valuable as a diamond. Both sparkle and delight the senses, and each is one of a kind.
read the rest of aticle here...
his etsy store here...
all of his books here...
his interview here....
buy his work here.....
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