Ceramics
Keiji Tanaka
Japanese potter Keiji Tanaka resides in the rural town of Hino located in Shiga Prefecture. Keiji is a potter originally from Kyoto and after studying under Shigeyoshi and Yuriko Morioka in Nara Prefecture he moved to Shiga where he is currently dedicating himself to the pursuit of using traditional pottery techniques to produce modern looking ceramics.
Keiji digs the soil by hand and mixes it himself to make the clay for his pots. All of the ceramics are made on a traditional kick wheel and are fired for a week in his wood-fired kiln. A process that takes a lot of time and care but leaves beautiful, natural markings on the surface of his pots and is known for his deep red and orange colours. Keiji is able to make rustic looking pots that are unique but still contemporary. Something extremely difficult considering the unpredictability of the processes that he goes through to make them.
