Ceramic artist
Yuji Muraki
Based in Izu, Shizuoka, Japan
Career
1953 — Born in Kanagawa.
1975 — Graduated from Tokyo Designer Gakuin.
1976 — Graduated from Seto Ceramics Training School.
1976 — Trained at an Ōtani-yaki kiln in Tokushima.
1980 — Established his studio in Ike, Itō, Shizuoka, and became independent.
1987 — Held his first solo exhibition in Numazu; has since exhibited throughout Japan.
2010 — Built a climbing kiln at his studio.
Today — Continues making ceramics in Izu, Shizuoka, with a focus on kohiki, Mishima, and Karatsu ware.
Main techniques: kohiki, Mishima, Karatsu, and hakeme; wood firing in a climbing kiln.
About the artist
Yuji Muraki mainly makes everyday vessels in kohiki, Mishima, Karatsu, and hakeme styles.
He pays close attention to the character of the clay itself. When working with raw clay, he does not remove every stone or impurity, but follows the condition of each earth to find the form suited to it. His work is usually fired in a gas kiln. Once or twice a year, he also fires the climbing kiln he built in 2010, accepting the changes brought by wood flame and ash—changes that cannot be fully predicted.
Rather than constantly inventing new forms, Muraki prefers to repeat the familiar vessels of daily life: bowls, plates, dishes, and katakuchi pouring vessels.
For Muraki, ceramics does not begin with deciding what he wants to make and then asking clay to obey human intention. A vessel is not complete the moment it leaves the kiln. Earth and fire complete one part; the rest is entrusted to food, hands, and the long passage of use.