Amakusa: A Place to Be Free

What kind of place is Amakusa, the town where he was born and raised, and also the base for his creative work, to Takashi Yomiya? We sat down with him to find out.

Nature, Daily Life, and People

Hanada: You were born and raised in Amakusa, and after training in Karatsu, you decided to return here.

Takashi Yomiya : To be honest, I just happened to come back to my hometown by chance, but Amakusa has always been a comfortable and favorite place of mine to live.

Hanada: Amakusa is rich in nature.

Takashi Yomiya : Nature remains untouched here; both the sea and mountains are beautiful. Food is also abundant.

Hanada: It allows you to lead a healthy daily life without any undue stress.

Takashi Yomiya : Exactly. We get to eat fresh catch and harvest every day—both vegetables and fish.

Hanada: How would you describe the disposition of the local people?

Takashi Yomiya : To put it nicely, they don’t worry about things too much. To put it bluntly, I sometimes think they should care just a little bit more (laughs).

Hanada: (Laughs) Everyone seems very cheerful, though.

Takashi Yomiya : Now that you mention it, yes, everyone is very bright. They are also kind to the point of being a bit meddlesome (laughs).

I Prefer Freedom

Hanada: How do you perceive the influence of Amakusa on your craft?

Takashi Yomiya : Of course, the foundation of my technique comes from Karatsu, where I learned pottery. However, when you look at the pieces themselves, I feel that the presence of Amakusa is much stronger.

Hanada: As you have mentioned before, Amakusa pottery does not have a specific, definitive style. Given that, when you say the presence of Amakusa is strong, you probably do not mean its physical appearance. What exactly is it?

Takashi Yomiya : It is a sense of being very relaxed and open-ended (laughs). I think it is something spiritual.

Hanada: A relaxed spirituality.

Takashi Yomiya : Yes, because I prefer freedom.

Hanada: Given that its history has been built primarily around folk kilns, perhaps there is an inherent feeling that pottery is meant for personal everyday use. There seems to be an atmosphere of creating pieces that match your true self, or making things you simply want to use yourself.

Takashi Yomiya : Exactly. That is the most important part—the kind of tableware I want to have when I eat my own meals.

Hanada: What if you had started your independent studio in Karatsu?

Takashi Yomiya : I probably would have been making traditional Karatsu ware. After all, ancient Karatsu ware was the very reason I leaped into this world. But once I came back to Amakusa, I didn’t have to limit myself to Karatsu ware anymore (laughs).

Hanada: No one expects traditional Karatsu ware from you here.

Takashi Yomiya : And I didn’t have to write “Karatsu Ware” on my studio sign (laughs). At first, I tried my best to make Karatsu pieces. But no matter what I did, they didn’t turn out like Karatsu ware (laughs). When I made them, they ended up looking like pottery from some unknown country.

Hanada: You clearly have your own distinct sense of texture. The pottery culture of Amakusa must have made it easier for you to work.

Takashi Yomiya : My style of work is basically, “I tried firing this, and this is how it turned out. What do you think?” I just shape the creative ideas as they come and show them to everyone. If people like them, I expand on that direction.

Hanada: Amakusa seems to have liberated your inherent qualities and allowed them to expand.

Takashi Yomiya : If this were a place where people would criticize me saying, “This isn’t real Kohiki glaze,” the scope of my work wouldn’t have grown the way it has. In that sense, Amakusa really suits me. There are no fixed answers here.

I Thought It Was a Mandarin Orange Bag…

Hanada: Let’s talk about Amakusa pottery stone, a name that anyone who loves pottery has likely heard at least once.

Takashi Yomiya : When I first joined Ryuta Kiln, there was a bag with “Amakusa” written on it. Amakusa is famous for mandarin oranges, so at first, I honestly thought they were reusing old mandarin orange bags to store clay.

Hanada: That is hilarious (laughs).

Takashi Yomiya : The veteran artisans at the kiln teased me, saying, “You don’t even know about Amakusa pottery stone?” (laughs).

Hanada: So, by going to Karatsu, you finally understood the true significance of those rocky mountains you had seen since childhood.

Takashi Yomiya : When I returned from Karatsu, I went back to take a fresh look at them (laughs).

Favorite Places

Hanada: Please tell us about your favorite places in Amakusa.

Takashi Yomiya : My absolute favorite is my own workshop. Especially when I return from a trip for an exhibition, the old traditional house brings a deep sense of relief. It is surrounded by mountains with no prominent man-made structures around. I feel like my body recovers faster here. Because of that, I don’t feel the need to go anywhere else for relaxation; I spend almost all my time at the workshop or at home.

Hanada: That is wonderful and very fortunate. Are there any other places you like?

Takashi Yomiya : The sea. I love going fishing in the evening, but watching the sunset while catching fish makes me really want to have a drink.

Hanada: (Laughs)

Takashi Yomiya : Being close to the inherent dangers of the sea probably brings out a sense of excitement in people.

Hanada: You mentioned before that you once had a near-death experience at sea.

Takashi Yomiya : Oh, that time was so painful and freezing. There was also a time when I was all excited to start fishing, and the wind blew all my brand-new gear right into the ocean (laughs).

Real Hardships

Hanada: We were just speaking about the mountains and the sea.

Takashi Yomiya : The mountains are for work, and the sea is for play. When I go to the mountains, trees look like firewood, cliffs look like clay, and slopes look like climbing kilns (laughs). At sea, I am completely free from work. Yet, for some reason, I have no desire to live right by the ocean. By the way, I prefer a calm sea. I dislike rough waters.

Hanada: Is that due to the influence of those bitter memories?

Takashi Yomiya : Being out in nature brings a raw reality, whether it’s the wind or the rain. It makes you truly appreciate a calm day. You don’t realize that when you are inside a city building.

Hanada: True, you rarely face genuine hardships there.

Takashi Yomiya : If the rain continues right before a solo exhibition, it is truly frustrating. My mind goes into full gear trying to figure out how to dry the pieces. When I wake up in the morning and see it’s sunny, I feel genuinely grateful.

Hanada: Is there anything else?

Takashi Yomiya : I like riding my bicycle into town early in the morning. Since I grew up closer to the town area, passing by my old schools and the paths I used to take brings me a sense of comfort.

Remaining True to Ourselves

Hanada: The topic of World Heritage sites also came up. The number of visitors will likely increase from now on.

Takashi Yomiya : While we might need a broader range of accommodations, I think it is perfectly fine for tourism to remain true to our local scale. Trying to compete with big cities is pointless. Instead of trying too hard to please people from the city, we should approach it with the mindset of bringing joy to the old man living next door. Even when it comes to tableware, people from the city appreciate pieces that feel as though Amakusa itself has been packed into them. I believe that keeping things authentic is an important aspect of tourism as well.

▼Following the interview in Japanese, we have a video showing scenes from his life in Amakusa. Please take a look.
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