The idea and practice of inheriting some kind of tradition is nothing more than conforming individuality to a certain standard (criteria, norm).

Hagi ware, which had been supported by the feudal system, made various efforts after the Meiji Restoration, observing how other regions' traditional industries achieved industrialization in response to the overwhelming influx of Western industrial economic power. However, it failed to gain a foothold in the regional economy and was unable to transform into a modern industry. But, using this crisis of survival as a springboard, it focused on the transmission of traditional techniques and, riding the wave of the Momoyama tea ceramic boom, promoted its historical significance, striving to create the image of "tea ceramics = Hagi." Modern Hagi ware, from the Taisho to the early Showa period, adopted the standard of reproducing Korean tea bowls, especially Ido tea bowls, which had been highly valued for their suitability to the wabi-suki aesthetic, using pottery materials that had been used since the Edo period. In other words, it revived the aesthetic sense of the tea ceremony perfected by Sen no Rikyu at the end of the 16th century, before the establishment of Hagi ware kilns, using pottery techniques originating from the Korean Peninsula.

However, a pottery-making approach that focuses solely on superficial imitation of past tea ceramics in terms of form, color, and conventions will only produce antique-like pieces that lack the patina of age.

Miwa Jusetsu, a Living National Treasure of Hagi ware, created a standard from a completely different dimension. This was the expression of individuality and reality, which improved upon traditional techniques by focusing on the materiality of the material, with the "Oni Hagi Wari Takadai Chawan" as the ultimate example. Specifically, it involved abandoning the production attitude that had considered the Ido ware copy to be the ultimate. However, this was neither a rejection of the Ido form as a form, nor a denial of the act of copying (imitation). Rather, it was the result of him pursuing the act of imitating the original with the recognition that it was an active and intellectual activity.

The essence of imitation lies in how one can refine a form of expression that has been copied, enhance its qualities, and thereby unleash a creative power that surpasses the original. In other words, imitation reveals the creator's resolve to foresee the evolutionary process of their artistic expression, as well as their way of life.

This exhibition, featuring six young artists— Yasushi Okada , Yuuta Saka , Masahiro Sakakura , Akihiro Shinjou , Takao Tahara , and Shin'ichi Tamamura —who aspire to be contemporary expressers of "tea ceramics = Hagi," is expected to be a starting point for creating a new standard that draws out the potential of their own creativity, beginning with a broad, personal exploration of the origins of the "Hagi tradition."

Yasuyuki Ishizaki (Deputy Director, Yamaguchi Prefectural Hagi Museum of Art and Urakami Memorial Hall)