Kenji Kojima

Fired at over 1300 degrees Celsius, works in the Iga ware tradition naturally develop a jade-green, glassy finish known as bidoro as substances from kiln ash and burning wood fuse onto their surfaces. This is often accompanied by a burnt patina, adding contrast and depth.

"Iga ware made great strides as a craft in the Momoyama and early Edo periods" -- the late 16th and early 17th centuries -- "when ceremonial teaware and other luxury items in the style were presented to feudal lords," explains Kenji Kojima, a master of the craft.

"The standard firing temperature for Iga ware is 1300 degrees. But raising the temperature of a kiln from 1250 to 1300 -- just 50 degrees' difference -- involves doubling or even tripling the amount of red pine it burns, at great cost. Topping 1250 degrees also makes it more likely that pieces will warp or be otherwise damaged, and limits the colors you can produce. This all makes mass production very difficult. In that sense, Iga ware is by nature a luxury -- a style for the most die-hard ceramics lovers."

Kojima enhances the traditional elements of Iga ware with his own dynamic and subtle touch, making his pieces truly wondrous to behold. While traditional Iga ware is his bread and butter, he also produces unique, modern pieces, adding immense breadth to his oeuvre.

The bulk of Kojima's work is in teaware -- ceremonial tea bowls (matchawan), as well as the vases and water pots used in tea ceremony. But teapots are his joy. "I have fun making them," he says -- perhaps because he only does so occasionally. These are somewhat more rustic than his high-end teaware. But they, too, are crafted with immense attention to detail, giving them a personality all their own.

And fun though making them may be, the teapots are of the highest quality. Kojima is well versed in the teapot tradition of Tokoname, a famed ceramics town, and interacts regularly with famed teapot makers who hail from there. He knows exactly what good teapots should be, and works tirelessly to hold his works to that standard.

"Teapots are composed of various parts, each of which dries and shrinks in a different way" as they are created in sequence, Kojima says. "To fit them all together at the end, you need to have a strong understanding of the clay you're using. Technique and experience are important above all else. In fact, the busier I am, the more teapots I try to make -- there is no better way to put your technique to the test."

Born in 1953 in Chita, Aichi Prefecture, Kojima was drawn to ceramics in his youth, and studied in the field at Tokoname High School, in the famed ceramics town of Tokoname. His father, however, deterred him from a career in ceramics, questioning whether he could make a living as an artist. And so he took a job at a tile company in nearby Iga after graduation. After a year, however, he quit to pursue his craft, becoming an apprentice to Tozo Konishi -- the third in a line of illustrious artists to hold that name – in Bizen, Okayama Prefecture.

"I had the clear goal of becoming an independent ceramics artist, so I told my master when I started, 'I'm leaving after five years'. Perhaps because of that, Konishi-sensei taught me all the basic skills I would need to operate on my own," Kojima says.

Eventually, Kojima left Bizen behind and returned to Iga, where he took a job at a local pottery company. While working in its product planning department, he was allowed free reign of the company's kiln and other facilities to practice his art. But after four years, he resigned, bothered by the conceptual gap between his work for the company, predicated on profit-seeking, and his search for fulfillment as an artist. Ever since, he has focused on his own ceramics full time.

Iga ware cannot be mass-produced, nor does it appeal to all tastes. But it is beloved by connoisseurs of pottery and has thrived as such. The tradition is infused with a uniquely Japanese sense of beauty, and Kojima has worked to integrate both Iga ware and that aesthetic sense into modern life -- a mission that has won him a substantial fan base. He has gained renown as a leading interpreter of Iga ware, frequently exhibiting his works in solo shows at high-end department stores across Japan.

"I always use the few exemplars of ancient Iga ware (Ko-Iga) my forefathers left as guides for my own work. As I work on pieces, I marvel at how artful Iga ware from the Momoyama period is and think about the types of work I want to create based on those models. Once I've gotten close, I leave a piece alone for a while to gather my strength and knowledge, then come back to it -- and repeat."

"I'm not afraid of failure," Kojima often says. And so he is free to explore all the possibilities that Iga ware has to offer.