Shōji Hamada

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Lore & Background

Hamada was born in Kawasaki, Japan, in 1894. After finishing his studies at the elite Hibiya High School, he studied ceramics at Tokyo Institute of Technology (then Tokyo Industrial College) with Kawai Kanjirō under Itaya Hazan. As the sole students interested in becoming artist-potters, Hamada and the slightly elder Kawai soon became friends, touring the city in search of inspiration. They worked together in Kyoto at the former body of the Kyoto Municipal Institute of Industrial Technology and Culture, where they experimented on glazes using various minerals. They were acquainted by Yanagi Sōetsu and Tomimoto Kenkichi while visiting potteries and exhibitions. Hamada was deeply impressed by a Tokyo exhibition of ceramic art by Bernard Leach, who was then staying with Yanagi Sōetsu, and wrote to Leach seeking an introduction. The two found much in common and became good friends, so much so that Hamada asked and was granted permission to accompany Leach to England in 1920 when the latter decided to return and establish a pottery there. Hamada and Leach were influential participants in the Pottery seminar at Black Mountain College in 1952, attended by many younger and later prominent potters.

Reader's Guide

Shōji Hamada's significance lies in his role as a central figure in the mingei (folk-art) movement and his influence on studio pottery both in Japan and the West. After spending three years in St Ives with Bernard Leach, he returned to Japan in 1923 and traveled to potteries, staying at Tsuboya in Okinawa Prefecture for weeks, then eventually established his workshop in Mashiko, about 100 km north-east of Tokyo. There he built his own pottery and committed himself to using only locally sourced materials—not only the clay, but also the glazes he created and the brushes he manufactured himself from dog hair and bamboo. In 1955 the Japanese government designated him "Living National Treasure," the first time for someone from the field of crafts. Following Yanagi Muneyoshi, Hamada was enthusiastic about the folk art movement in Japan. When Yanagi died in 1961, he succeeded as the second director of the Japanese Folk Crafts Museum, and in 1977 he opened his own museum at his home, Mashiko Sankōkan (present Shoji Hamada Memorial Mashiko Sankokan Museum), exhibiting his collection of folk crafts from Japan and abroad. Hamada was very supportive of young artists who moved to Mashiko, such as his student Shimaoka Tatsuzō and Kamoda Shōji, and was also important in establishing Mashiko as a destination for day tourism. He provided housing and hosted workplaces for visiting potters from abroad. Since moving to Mashiko, Hamada bought, relocated, and refurbished traditional farm houses, stone warehouses, and nagaya-mon gatehouses of the Edo period unique to southern Tochigi Prefecture on his property. In 1989 his residence was donated to and rebuilt at Mashiko Museum of Ceramic Art (Ceramic Art Messe Mashiko) after the house was designated a cultural property of Mashiko. The museum is still open today, and visitors can view Hamada's studio, living quarters, and various craft collections. Throughout a lifetime dedicated to making pottery, he achieved international recognition, and his works have been collected by museums across the world. In the United Kingdom and the US, his style and philosophy became well known amongst studio potters, and he was revered as the archetypal "Oriental" potter. Today Hamada's works attain high prices at auction. In the UK, examples of his work can be seen at the York Art Gallery.

Did You Know?

• Hamada was designated a 'Living National Treasure' in 1955, the first time someone from the field of crafts received that honor.
• He manufactured his own brushes from dog hair and bamboo, using only locally sourced materials.
• Hamada accompanied Bernard Leach to England in 1920 to help establish a pottery there.
• He succeeded Yanagi Muneyoshi as the second director of the Japanese Folk Crafts Museum after Yanagi died in 1961.
• In 1989, Hamada's residence was donated to and rebuilt at the Mashiko Museum of Ceramic Art after being designated a cultural property of Mashiko.