Masako Nakagami 'Sculptural Stone Container' B
Dimensions - W 11cm x H 6cm
Materials - Locally sourced clay finished with a glaze blended with ash from a wood-burning stove
Method - Can hold water, although may absorb and leak if left for long periods.
Description
Masako Nakagami presents a series of small ceramic pebble forms that shift between object and vessel. When displayed flat, they read as stone-like presences; when turned, small openings reveal their potential to function as delicate vases. Each piece is formed using a glaze blended with ash from a wood-burning stove, carefully refined to enhance a natural, weathered surface. The resulting textures evoke the softness and irregularity of found stones. Rather than prioritising function, Nakagami invites these works to be encountered as playful, contemplative objects; forms that hold space and encourage stillness.
“Just as stones have no front or back,
they hold no good or evil—
they simply exist.
As a child, in quiet moments spent stacking and arranging stones in nature,
I touched the stillness within myself.
The textures born from failure, too,
like life itself,
are never wasted.”
About the Artist
Masako Nakagami is a Japanese ceramicist working in a range of techniques including hand building and wheel throwing to create her curved forms that feature expressive surface textures.
Masako worked at Kyoto University of Art and Design as an assistant teacher in the Department of Ceramics before moving to the UK and setting up her studio in East London. Now back in Kyoto, Masako exports her ceramics throughout the world.
Read more about Masako's practice and view her full collection..
