Yano Kanichi (1942/43–2023)

Yano Kanichi (1942/43–2023) was born in Tokushima and came from a family of potters established in Otani for more than a century. He was the fourth head of Yano Tōen, one of the historic Otani kilns, and devoted his career to the making and transmission of Otani ceramics. A Regular Member of the Japan Kōgei Association, he received the Tokushima Art and Culture Award in 2017 in recognition of his contribution to the region’s artistic culture.

Yano Kanichi was particularly committed to preserving the traditional techniques of Otani while giving them a contemporary expression. This vase notably illustrates the use of the ibushi-yaki technique, a smoking firing traditionally associated with the production of Japanese roof tiles. It produces a silver-grey to black surface with a distinctive metallic appearance.