Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well.
As we are in the rainy season, the days have been quite hot and humid.
It is a time to enjoy seasonal flowers like hydrangeas and bellflowers while hoping to keep a cool and refreshed heart.
Well then, since the end of June, the Bizen City Bizen Ware Museum, located next to Ibe Station, has been holding an exhibition titled "The Past, Present, and Future of Saikumono (Decorative Bizen Ware)."
True to the title "The Past, Present, and Future," the exhibition brings together masterpieces of decorative work from ancient times, exceptional pieces left behind by modern masters, and works by contemporary ceramic artists who will carry the future of Bizen ware.
The exhibition was planned under the leadership of Mr. Hikaru Shimamura, a master of Bizen decorative works, who remarked, "I am looking forward to the bright future that these young artists are weaving."
Unlike previous exhibitions that focused heavily on the "past," this is a wonderful exhibition that re-examines the "present" and connects it to the "future."
In the exhibition pamphlet, there is a greeting from the museum director, Mr. Yosuke Usui, who notes that the Jomon pottery, the ancestor of the now-mainstream functional ceramic vessels, and the dogu clay figurines, the ancestors of decorative works, were created around the same time.
While people used pottery as an essential part of daily life for cooking, harvesting, and gathering, they also offered prayers and put their hopes into decorative works, using them as a source of spiritual support.
If ceramic ware is created with the mission to serve as a functional vessel, I feel that decorative work is created with the mission to fulfill the heart and give shape to the spirit.
Though they cannot be used to pour fine sake or serve exquisite dishes, the pride and playful spirit of the master craftsmen still move the hearts of viewers even after decades or centuries.
I have been reflecting and reconsidering the significance of these decorative works myself.
I have provided the detailed schedule below, and I hope you will all take the time to visit.
[Schedule]
June 29 (Thu) – September 3 (Sun) *Closed on Mondays (If Monday is a national or substitute holiday, the museum will be closed the following day)
9:00 - 17:00 (Last entry at 16:30)
[Location]
Bizen City Bizen Ware Museum, 1st and 2nd Floors
1659-6 Ibe, Bizen City, Okayama Prefecture 705-0001
TEL. 0869-64-1400 FAX. 0869-63-8300
[Admission Fee]
Adults 500 yen, High school/University students 300 yen, Junior high school students and under: Free *100 yen discount for groups of 20 or more