Having lived my life as a potter, I have noticed that there are two main types of energy in my body.
One is the poisonous fin de siècle designs he exhibited in New York in his youth, and the other is a return to Japanese classics, a quiet longing for tea bowls and a world of copies.
This is a direct contrast between the strong military commander who was fighting to rule the country and the tea master Hechikan, who lived his life in extreme simplicity, using only one kettle and a few tea bowls.

This time, I chose to focus on the "Nekkan's Staff," which is a staff that is thrust into the ground, as if Nekkan is speaking to modern people.
And while he continued to create "modern classic" tea bowls, he decided to create tea bowls that were intended for the appreciation of free ideas.
When we think of appreciation, we think of paintings, when we think of Japanese paintings, we think of Rinpa, and when we think of Rinpa, we think of Seigaiha.
His free-spirited ideas gradually led him to create the Akaraku tea bowl, and he went on to develop his own unique techniques and create many failed tea bowls.
The vivid red color of this Akaraku tea bowl may be the same red as the large red outdoor tea ceremony umbrella that caught Hideyoshi's eye when Nekuni made his debut at the Kitano tea ceremony.

Kohei Nakamura

Red Ambition

Nakamura Kohei baked the Akaraku.
Enjoying tea ceremony in a dimly lit tea room while watching white steam rising from an iron kettle...this is not the kind of Akaraku tea bowl you would expect.

In 1992, he exhibited his fin de siècle ceramic objects at Garth Clark, one of New York's leading galleries, and his works became so popular that they were added to the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This marks Nakamura Kohei's spectacular debut in contemporary art.
When he was in trouble in America, he fled back to Kanazawa and started making copies of tea bowls by Chojiro and Koetsu. He was obsessed with antique art and made copies of various tea bowls.
In 2012, he created a large object for the "Futurist Crafts" exhibition at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa, demonstrating his talent for contemporary art both in Japan and overseas.
In 2013, Heisei Ido impressed Hayashiya Seizo and took centre stage at the tea bowl exhibition at the Kikuchi Tomo Museum of Art.
He is always in the news.

Now in 2023, Nakamura Kohei's next ambition is to create a red Raku decorated with the Seigaiha pattern.
A decorative tea bowl for viewing, a never-before-seen red tea bowl that would have pleased a Momoyama period samurai.
His challenges and ambitions continue.

Keiko Aono