EXPOSITION
Show Of Japanese Ceramics

Nepalese art lovers thoroughly enjoyed the exhibition of Japanese ceramics at the Nepal Art Council Gallery

By A CORRESPONDENT

The Embassy of Japan, in cooperation with Nepal Art Council held an exhibition of "Japanese Contemporary Clay Work" in Kathmandu from March 22 to April 2, 2006 on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between Japan and the Kingdom of Nepal . The exhibition was sponsored by The Japan Foundation.

H.E. Tsutomu Hiraoka, Ambassador of Japan and Rt. Hon'ble Kirti Nidhi Bista, Vice-Chairman of the Council of Ministers, who is also Chairman of Nepal Art Council, jointly inaugurated the exhibition on Tuesday, March 21, 2006 at Nepal Art Council, Babarmahal.

Japanese ceramics are internationally famous and highly acclaimed, as they have been frequently introduced and exported to abroad through overseas shipment trading since 17 th century. In 1946, the world of Japanese ceramic arts came alive again after the war. It was characteristic of the postwar period that new movements developed through the formation of large schools and of other groups of craft artists. Each of these groups was engaged in creating its own ways of thinking about ceramic art. Some stressed traditional techniques, others creativity, but to all the production of non- functional work was a major shock that unsettled thinking about crafts.

Following these developments, the production of huge ceramic works and installations became a conspicuous trend in Japan by the latter half of 1980s. Neither their creators nor the critics felt that the conventional term for work in clay, togei, quite fit; instead, they borrowed the English term 'clay work'. While the literal meaning could cover all possible work in clay, in Japan it was applied only to large-scale, three-dimensional pieces in clay and to installations. Works that used clay as an expressive medium in some way, without firing, was also designated clay work.

The exhibition of Japanese Contemporary Clay Work showcased the work of Japanese artists in this field. The distinctive, individualistic works in the exhibition were both essentially contemporary as well as reflective of age-old Japanese sensibilities.

Both of our peoples share values of contemporary art and traditional culture found in Japan and Nepal in different forms. Clay Work is one of the highlights of them. Art loving Nepalese people who visited the exhibition enjoyed Japanese Contemporary Clay Work displayed.