Shuji Yanagibashi Kasama Ware Ovoid Vase – Coloured Slip and Gold Geometric Panel, 20 cm - Ceramic - Shuji Yanagibashi - Japan - Shōwa period (1926-1989)

Shuji Yanagibashi, Kasama Ware Ovoid Vase with Coloured Slip and Gold Geometric Panel, 20 cm
– A flower vase by Shuji Yanagibashi of the Ryuho kiln in Kasama, Ibaraki Prefecture
– A bold geometric diamond in cream and dark slip, its fields outlined in fine gold lines
– Speckled grey glaze descending into a deep brown-black base, in near-unused condition

Summary: A Kasama ware flower vase by the potter Shuji Yanagibashi, standing 20 cm high. The ovoid body rises to a short, narrow neck, with a speckled grey glaze on the upper part giving way to a dark brown-black band around the base. On the front, a large diamond-shaped panel is worked in cream-white and speckled dark brown slip in a pattern of arcs and circles, each field edged in gold. The vase has been used for flowers only about twice and is in near-unused condition.

Shuji Yanagibashi was born in Kasama in 1946 and trained at the Kyoto Prefectural ceramics technical school before working at his own Ryuho kiln in his home town. He is best known for his hyoryumon, or flowing-ice decoration, and has also developed work in coloured clay and slip with geometric designs. His pieces have entered the collections of Honen-in temple in Kyoto and the Thai royal family, and in 2025 he received the Minister of Education Award at the International Art Grand Prize Exhibition.

Kasama, north-east of Tokyo, has a pottery tradition reaching back to the eighteenth century, and in modern times it has become one of Japan's liveliest centres for individual studio potters. Yanagibashi's work belongs to that spirit of personal invention, joining traditional throwing with a strongly contemporary sense of design.

The form is simple and full: a broad, egg-like body that swells at the shoulder and tapers gently towards the foot, finished with a small, neat mouth. The fine throwing rings remain visible beneath the glaze, and the surface is speckled throughout with dark iron flecks, so that the grey upper body has the look of weathered stone.

Across the front, the decoration is boldly graphic. A tall diamond is split down the centre by a vertical band of the grey ground, and within it interlocking arcs and a central circle are laid out in contrasting cream-white and dark speckled slip. Each field is outlined in a fine gold line, and two tiny green dots punctuate the design. Turn the vase and the panel slips out of view, leaving the quiet two-tone body on its own.

At 20 cm high, it is generous enough for a branch or a small seasonal arrangement, yet strong enough as a sculptural object to stand alone on a sideboard, shelf or tokonoma alcove, where the gold lines catch the light.

The vase is in near-unused condition, having been used for flowers about twice, and no damage is visible. Please view the images closely for the overall condition.

A striking work by a contemporary Kasama master, where earthy glazes meet crisp geometric design.

This listing contains AI Visualisations. Please refer to the original photographs for the actual object condition.

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