The Story of IHEI (Kitagawa Ihei)
| Noted as one of ARITA YAKI's finest ceramic painters, IHEI started his
career at FUKAGAWA SEIJI in 1910 after an 11 year period of classical training.
In an era when ARITA was becoming more business oriented and employing
specialists in different fields, IHEI stood out as an all-rounder who excelled
at traditional techniques while pioneering new designs. His main function at FUKAGAWA SEIJI ( and later at KORANSHA etc. ) was Head of Design and it is rumoured that it was IHEI himself who designed the presents for the Emperor Taisho's coronation in 1912. His design sketches show great artistic talent and an immaculate eye for detail. Later these sketches were to become irrelevant to his art as he developed the skill of painting directly on to the pottery freehand. By 1913, IHEI was working freelance, producing large exhibition pieces by himself and in collaboration with other artists. Honing his skills over the years in this way he was able eventually to open his own kiln in the early 1950's. In 1951, IHEI established KITAGAWA TOGEI company with his 5 sons and gave full vent to his artistic capabilities. This period marks a time of great creativity and innovation for the master potter. He continued to produce well-regarded masterpieces and instructed fledgling painters at his private art school. Renowned for his pioneering spirit, IHEI also started to explore new areas . Enlisting the help of his 5 sons, he embarked on the process of making the artistic miniature figurines which have become the basis of this collection. Having trained his children well, IHEI was able in later life to retire and live a quiet life leaving his capable offspring to continue the good work. Looking at the miniature figurines, one can see that, although not as physically imposing as IHEI's dynamic exhibition pieces, they encapsulate the artist's acute sense of colour and line, and represent the culmination of IHEI's skills in a compact form. Now under the management of one of IHEI's sons, IHEI 4th, KITAGAWA TOGEI's miniatures carry on the tradition of respecting the original early 50's designs while also injecting the personality of the current master into the most modern pieces. It is as if in later years, IHEI poured all of his creative energies into these figurines and left them as a legacy to his children and indeed to all lovers of ARITA throughout the world. |
| Brief profile of Kitagawa Yoshiharu Born on 21 Aug in 1912 as the first son of Ihei. Having studied design, he formed a young painter's group "Shinjusha" with his friends and this is where he received great artistic stimulation. After he joined Koransha, he was invited to a Kyoto porcelain & pottery research insitiuite. During his stay in Kyoto he left many porcelain designs, including copies of famous Edo period painters such as Ogata Korin, Maruyama Oukyo, as well as old Chinese porcelain. After Yoshiharu came back from World War II , he became sick from excessive fatigue. Even though he was bed-ridden for many years, he collaborated in the establishment of the animal miniatures company with his father, Ihei and his brothers.He dies at age of 51 as he was going after Ihei. |