Shiro Otani“Pottery was more than just

part of his daily life; it became part of his psyche”

Valerie Simón

• Shiro Otani was born in Shigaraki in 1936.

• He began his studies at the Kyoto Municipal School of Arts and Crafts under Kyubei Kiyomizu, Eiichi Shohu and Kunio Uchida.

• In 1973 Otani built an anagama and a

noborigama (climbing kiln).

• In Shigaraki, he studied under Uichi Shimizu a "living national treasure.“

• In 1990 Otani was designated as an intangible cultural asset of Shigaraki

Biographical Facts

Shiro was totally absorbed with the idea of working in the tradition of Shigaraki

Shiro Otani's image of that tradition springs from and revolves around a special feeling he has for two elements he believes make Shigaraki ware special:

– The material itself: a coarse, white, highly refractory clay, flecked with feldspathic rocks that appear to erupt over the entire surface of the pot when it is fired. – The interaction of the clay with ash and flame in the lengthy and intense wood firing that gives Shigaraki pottery its distinctive surfaces, ranging from soft pinks and oranges to crusty gray and toasted brown covered with transparent olive green glaze.

Otani’s believes & Shigaraki pottery

1981 Plate

The concept of harmony forms the cornerstone of Otani's idea of beauty. This kind of harmony it is much like the imperfect perfection of nature--fragile, raw, full of contradictions-that is never redundant and always compelling. Shiro Otani tries to emulate these qualities in his own work by the continuous denial of the superfluous, as well as his insistence on searching for beauty in the basic, rather than trying to find it in the lavish and/or the extravagant

One of the best examples of melding this notion of harmony with his desire to fashion a personal statement inside the Shigaraki tradition is his "broken" ware. Begun in the early '80s, these plates and vases were made deliberately to crack or break in the long firing.

 Otani's Studio in Shigaraki

Although other places in Japan, besides Shigaraki, also have a long history of wood-fired ware,

Shigaraki's clay and the unique way it interacts with fire have made it recognizable worldwide.

Otani has taught and worked as an artist-in-residence at institutions throughout the world, including:

– Arrowmont School for Arts and Crafts

– New York State University

– West Georgia College,– The Arthur M. Sackler

Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution

Teaching

Shiro Otani's is considered as one of the most important and influential potters of his generation in Japan.

He is the recipient of the Governor's Award at Shiga Prefectural Art Exhibition and the Fifth Japan Crafts Association's Kinki Exhibition Award, as well as a past participant in the 16th and 20th Exhibitions of Japanese Traditional Arts and Crafts. He was a member of the committee that arranged the Shigaraki World Pottery Festival in 1989.

Achievements

Woodburning kiln built by

Otoni

Otani’s Kiln Construction

Exhibitions in Japan

Otani has had many solo exhibitions in Japan including

• Takashimaya (in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Okayama),

• Seibu (in Ikebukuro, Yurakucho), Meitetsu,

• Osaka Mitsukoshi• Minami Aoyama Green

Gallery.

Otani’s Collections in the United States

In the United States Otani's work has been collected by

• The Fogg Museum at Harvard University

• The Brooklyn Museum of Art• The Museum of Art in Atlanta• The Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.

• Exhibitions have been held in New York City and at the Embassy of Japan Culture Center in Washington D.C.

My Drawings

Artist Potters Website:• http://www.artistpotters.com/artist_potters/

otani.html

The Cleveland Museum of Arts Wbsite:http://cmaoh.org/Explore/artist.asp?artistLetter=O&recNo=45

Bibliography