Ban Kajitani

Japanese, b. 1941

Oceanscape
1982

Stoneware
13.5 x 10.5 x 9.75 in.
Gift of the Nora Eccles Treadwell Foundation
1984.888

In Oceanscape, Ban Kajitani uses the “neriage” technique, originally popularized during China’s Tang dynasty, to produce the dynamic marbled design of the vessel. While on a visit to Capitol Reef National Park in southern Utah in 1974, Kajitani was enchanted with the majestic layering of sedimentary rock. The landscape reminded him of neriage, in which a layered, vibrant clay body is created through wedging differently colored clays to create a marbled effect. In Oceanscape, the vessel’s beauty comes from the clay body itself rather than any surface glaze. The dynamic swirls within the vessel are reminiscent of the ocean’s current, while alluding to the layering of sediments that create the geological terrain of the ocean floor.

Born in 1941 in Japan, Ban Kajitani apprenticed in a Japanese pottery studio after graduating from art school in Tokyo. He relocated to the United States in 1974 to study under Larry Elsner at Utah State University, where he received an MFA degree in 1976. Kajitani worked as a professor of ceramics at Columbus College of Art and Design before retiring and returning to Japan.

Matthew Limb

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This object has the following keywords:

• black
• brown
• cream
• lines
• marbling - The technique of imitating or suggesting the appearance or pattern of marble or another such stone, usually by hand painting on paper, wood, fresco, or other surfaces. For a broader, less delicate technique, as used in construction, use "marbleizing."
• red

This object was included in the following exhibitions:

• Ceramic Case 6: Nature as Inspiration (left) and Maria Martinez (right) , 8/17/2012 - 10/17/2013
• Unearthed , 8/23/2022 - 5/14/2023

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