Japan, Exceptional Japanese Porcelain Vase By Shigakazu Nagae, 1991

Born in 1953 in Seto, renowned for its long ceramic tradition, Shigekazu Nagae has established himself as one of the emblematic figures of contemporary abstract porcelain. Raised in a family of potters, he learned traditional ceramic techniques from a young age before transcending them with a resolutely modern approach. A graduate of the Seto ceramics school, he perfected his mastery of Ikomi, a porcelain casting technique, which he reinvented by integrating it into an innovative artistic approach. This vase, circa 1991, bears witness to this constant exploration of the material and aesthetic limits of porcelain. Its fluid form, enhanced by delicate undulations, seems to capture an eternal movement, evoking both the softness and tension of the molten material. These undulating patterns, forming a slight relief on the surface, already announce Nagae's current sculptural research, where forms, freed from all constraints, stretch and curve like waves frozen in time. Nagae uses casting, a technique traditionally associated with mass production. However, he diverts this process to shape forms, questioning the limits of the technique. As with this vase, his creations begin by casting rectangular pieces in slip, which are then left to dry and undergo an initial firing. The joints are then vitrified by the application of glaze, merging the pieces into a single entity. He quickly evolves towards abstract forms for which he uses the same technique and then suspends the sheets of slip in his kiln using rigid iron wires. These pieces then take shape thanks to the unique intensity of the kiln, allowing the formation of thin and fragile porcelain sheets. Nagae’s “Moving Forms” series illustrates his constant exploration of the limits of porcelain, playing with continuous lines and surfaces to create abstract forms that often evoke Japanese nature, such as hills, rivers and wind. His work has been widely acclaimed with numerous awards and has been acquired by many prestigious institutions around the world, including the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the Musée National de Céramique de Sèvres, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, among others. He continues to be a source of inspiration and fascination, cementing his position as a pioneer in contemporary porcelain art. Original signed box