Hibi Kohiki deep bowl by Atsushi Ogata (Copy)

Atsushi Ogata

Atsushi Ogata got a bit of a late start in the world of pottery, but is quickly making up for any lost time. Art was not an obvious or early choice for Ogata, who was born and raised in Tokyo. After college, he spent several years in the publishing world before being introduced to pottery by his wife, who he met while both were in college.

His wife left her job as a teacher to study pottery in Seto City, a famous city for ceramics and pottery, located in Japan’s Aichi Prefecture. When she graduated, Ogata quit his editor job and also studied pottery in Seto. After graduating, Ogata and his wife worked for another artisan, and they also began showing their pieces at a market in Seto City.

His style developed from decorative to simple as he grew — evolving to rough and masculine shapes. And it was just natural part of this process that his focus shifted to making art for everyday use around the home.

Ogata held a belief that unrefined clay shows the original characteristics of the ground it came from - the essential elemental character of the soil itself. As this philosophy developed and matured, he traveled to many areas of Japan to find the type of clay he liked most. Eventually, he and his wife settled in a remote part of the Nara countryside where he found the clay he really appreciated and built his kilns there. They still reside and maintain a studio in that Nara countryside.

Ogata wants people who use his pottery and who enjoy his work to feel the nature in each piece. His wish is to bring that nature to the dining table.

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Ogata says working with Makigama (wood fire kiln) takes lots of physical and mental strength, so he recently started to challenge the larger scale work when he can still manage. While he naturally has a laid back tone, there is some sense of urgency.

Although gas kiln is much easier to control the production, Ogata enjoys the unexpected results of Makigama process. Instability and inefficiency actually draws out the zest of clay, he says.

His style developed from decorative to simple over time — almost a refinement to a rough and masculine shapes. And it was just natural process that his priority shifted to ease of everyday use.

To learn more about featured artist's collection, please contact Japan Suite.