Suzuki Goro: The Story of Oribe

SUZUKI GORO

THE STORY OF ORIBE

The Story of Oribe In Celebration of Suzuki Goro's 80th Birthday November 6 - 28, 2021 Front Cover- Oribe Goribe Mizusashi Pair Back Cover- E Oribe Chawan Photographer- Suzuki Mayu

Lucy Lacoste Gallery 25 Main Street, Concord MA lucylacoste.com | info@lucylacoste.com

Suzuki Goro

b. April 8, 1941

In realizing that 2021 was master Suzuki Goro’s 80th birthday year, we knew this milestone was worthy of celebration. Talking to Goro-san, he suggested that all the works be in Oribe, a style known for its eccentricities and free expression.

Oribe originated in the Momoyama period (1573 – 1615) in Japan. While thought of by most as a copper green glaze, it can be many other colors, including red, black, and brown. Influenced by Japanese fabric design, it often includes drawings in asymmetrical shapes such as squares, rectangles, and circles, on which it is easy to expand, leading to infinite artistic expression. The innovative “Goro” style embodies the spirit of the Momoyama period (spontaneous flowing creativity) combined with his own iconic language drawing on memories of his youth and his life today.

Suzuki Goro is an internationally renowned artist whose life changed from that of an artisan to that of an artist when he discovered pop art in 1969, after a fruitful trip to the USA. Returning to Japan, he was intent on becoming an artist with full expression and individualism.

The work of Suzuki Goro demonstrates a masterful manipulation of the material and an aesthetic of freedom and simplicity. Long admired by Japanese collectors, the work is a favorite of artists and connoisseurs in the United States. Suzuki’s career spans over 60 years, from his early days as a production potter through his tremendous success as an artist of the highest level.

Suzuki Goro, 2021, photographed by his daughter Mayu

It is an honor to be showing works of this revered master made especially for this exhibition.

Artist Statement What's most important when making pottery is the material. What's wanted in the finished product is texture. Ideally, we extract the raw personality of the clay as it was when buried in the ground. Even if buried in the same area, just a small change in location can affect that personality. Appearance is also affected by the glaze, firing method, and conditions we choose. The personality of the fired pot emerges with use.

The Yahichida water jar has a squishy ["pudding-like"] feeling. I painted a picture on it by running a brush over it with a light touch. This Yahichida illustration was truly lightly and quickly drawn in one stroke. The E-Oribe water jar [mizusashi] was thrown in a way that shows the movement of the wheel – this is a an excellent piece on which I intentionally placed straight lines on that movement-filled shape.

My theme for this exhibition is Oribe. As you know, Oribe covers several different types of ceramics. Compared to other forms, I feel that Oribe has more breadth for combining images and shapes. More variation makes it more interesting.

The end-point of these variations are the Oribe Goribe water jars [mizusashi].

As I was making the various types of chawan, I stacked the fired cups up. I became interested in this stack of cups, and decided to make these jars. This could only be made as a Hoso-Mizusashi (tall water jar). I am satisfied with the results.

About the works: There are two ways of making Narumi Oribe. Put simply, in one method red clay is painted onto an Oribe clay, and in the other method Oribe clay is joined with the red clay. The works in this show are mainly made by the joining method. This is clear when you look at the Narumi tokkuri with script. The letters "I, ro, ha, ni, ho, he, to" as well as the letters on the Aka Chawan are from the old Japanese alphabet.

The picture drawn on the inside of the Tetsu E-Oribe ceramic box is a memento from long ago. In my childhood, I would load grass or vegetables into a pull-cart to carry them. That was my job. As a child, I raised crows from chicks. Crows left a very deep impression on me. I sometimes paint crows as self-portraits. In this show, those pictures appear on my Guinomi [large sake cups].

The seven chawan on exhibit each represent a different type of Oribe. I hope they show the differences and qualities of each type. I used to make Oribe chawan on the wheel, but lately I have been hand building them as well. (Sou Oribe and Yahichida are wheel thrown; the rest are hand-built).

The wheel gives a feeling of speed, but hand building has warmth and personality, and its different texture is intriguing.

The leaf-shaped pots were shaped by hand-building, then further shaped after throwing on a wheel – both methods have their good points.

- Suzuki Goro, 2021

CHAWAN TEA BOWLS

Narumi Oribe 3.35h x 4.33w x 4.92d in

E Oribe 4.13h x 5.51w x 4.84d in

Sou Oribe 2.87h x 5.12w x 4.53d in

Kuro Oribe Back

Kuro Oribe Front 4.53h x 4.53w in

Aka Oribe w/ letters from old Japanese alphabet 4.13h x 5.04w in

Yahichida Oribe

3.54h x 5.63w in

Oribe Kuro 3.54h x 5.63w x 4.92d in

MIZUSASHI WATER JAR

9.65h x 5.71w x 5.31d in

Oribe Goribe

7.28h x 5.31w x 4.72d in

E Oribe

Yahichida Oribe

9.06h x 8.27w in

6.69h x 8.07w in

BENTO BOX

Tetsu E Oribe Box 6.69h x 9.84w x 9.25d in

INSIDE VIEW

Bottom

Top

GUINOMI SAKE CUPS

Kuro Oribe 2.36h x 2.56w in

E Oribe

Yakishime E Oribe

2.17h x 2.83w in

1.97h x 2.36w in

Yahichida Oribe

Yahichida Oribe

2.36h x 2.56w in

2.36h x 2.76w in

Kokumon Oribe

Oribe Kuro

2.17h x 2.68w in

2.36h x 2.87w in

TOKKURI SAKE BOTTLES

E Oribe

E Oribe

5.12h x 3.82w in

4.72h x 3.35w in

E Oribe

Yahichida Oribe

6.30h x 3.74w in

5.51h x 3.82w in

Narumi Oribe

8.07h x 4.92w in

6.10h x 3.43w in

6.69h x 3.35w in w/ letters from old Japanese alphabet

HAGATAHACHI Leaf Shape Dish

Tetsu E Oribe Hachi 3.15h x 9.84w x 8.07d in

Tetsu E Oribe Hachi 3.54h x 11.22w x 9.84d in

Resume

Selected Museum Collections, USA

Solo Exhibitions

Denver Art Museum

2021: The Story of Oribe | Lucy Lacoste Gallery, Concord MA, United States

The Metropolitan Museum of Fine Art

Tebineri Suzuki Goro | Mitsukoshi / Sakae Nagoya 2019: Suzuki Goro - Raku iroiro | Takashimaya / Nihonbashi Tokyo, Nagoya Expression In Five Forms | Lucy Lacoste Gallery, Concord MA, US 2018: Tennen Jido Sometsuke | Maruei / Nagoya 2017: Raku Suzuki Goro | Maruei / Nagoya 2015: Suzuki Goro’s Seto Iga World | Maruei / Nagoya

Minneapolis Institute of Arts Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Japanese Pavilion, CA Peabody Essex Museum, MA Worcester Art Museum, MA Marer Collection at Scripps College, Claremont, CA

Dinner Plate | Gallery Kenbishi / Nagoya Live in Earth, Play in Earth | Menard Art Museum / Komaki, Aichi 2014: Goribe | Takashimaya /Nihonbashi Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya 2013: Horse | Gallery Kenbishi / Nagoya 2010: Shino and Stone | Frank Lloyd Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, United States 2009: Tale of four cities | Takashimaya Art Gallery, Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya and Osaka Selected Museum Collections, Japan

Awards -Nitten (Japan Art Academy Award) Governor of Aichi Prefecture Prize, Asahi Ceramic Arts Exhibition ’61, 1961 -Prize, Asahi Ceramic Arts Exhibition, 1962 -Grand Prize, Asahi Ceramic Arts Exhibition, 1966 -Award, Third Chunichi International Ceramic Exhibition -Rhode Island School of Art and Design, Visiting Scholar Prize, Asahi Ceramic Arts Exhibition, 1975

Aichi Prefectural Ceramic Museum

-Cranbrook Academy of Art, Michigan, Visiting Scholar

The Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu

-Prize the Japan Ceramic Society Award, 2001

Menard Art Museum, Aichi