Japan - Mikio Osako, 1940–1995 — Tokoname Stoneware Vase, Circa 1975

Tokoname stoneware vase by Osako Mikio, circa 1975, preserved with its tomobako, the original signed box. The piece dates from a period when the artist approached the Tokoname tradition not merely as a regional heritage but as a sculptural language: a flattened form, a generous belly, an architecturally shaped base, and a short neck with a strongly defined lip.

The surface retains all the raw power of Tokoname stoneware. The dark, grainy, iron-rich clay exhibits natural firing effects, with brown and gray areas, sections bleached by ash, and greenish streaks. The decoration is not added; it arises from the material, the fire, and the controlled accidents of the firing process. The discreet incisions and reliefs inscribed in the body reinforce this tension between vase, mineral landscape, and constructed object.

Osako Mikio, born in Japan in 1940 and who died in 1995, is associated with the revival of Tokoname, one of Japan’s six historic pottery centers. His work is part of a generation of artists who revisited traditional clays and high-fire techniques to create modern, freer forms, often resembling sculpture. A jar by Osako Mikio, also made of Tokoname stoneware and dated around 1975, is held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York under inventory number 1979.482. This museum presence confirms the importance of his work in the history of modern Japanese ceramics.

Good condition. Original signed box.

Height 35 cm, width approximately 30 cm, depth approximately 15 cm.