TOKUDA Yasokichi Ⅲ 3代 徳田八十吉 1933-2009

Tokuda Yasokichi III was born in 1933 in Kanazawa, and is famed for his polychrome ceramics, or saiyu jiki. He  was designated in 1997 for his production of colorful porcelain. He uses pigmented glazes on simple forms to create the deep color of his show-stopping pieces. Passed directly from grandfather to grandson, these glazes were developed by Tokuda Yasokichi I and given with the advice that they would provide for his grandson’s future. Tokuda Yasokichi III has certainly made the best of his family’s techniques through both his own work and that of his studio. His work continues the tradition of colorful decoration that characterizes Kutani ware but in a uniquely contemporary way.

The Kutani canon is famous for its polychrome enamels and glazes. Tokuda’s technique allowed him to control the suffusion of Kutani color glazes to a very high degree, creating precise color compositions that blended one color seamlessly to the next. His saiyu jiki rendered an effect that blurred the lines between design, high art, and craft. Today, his daughter, Tokuda Yasokichi IV continues on the legacy of Kutani ware in Japan with her own unique take on the porcelain type. His work is in the permanent collection of many major museums and institutions, such as the British Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and more.