Seaweed-Harvesting Boat

Hanada: Please tell us about these new works.

Mansaku Nakao : I created a new mold. This type of box-shaped boat with the ends cut off is called a seaweed-harvesting boat. There are also lotus root boats and water shield boats. Even at Chidorigafuchi near Hanada, they remove lotus leaves and weeds, load them into boats like these, and use them for cleanup, don’t they?

Hanada: It looks like a shape that would hold things very neatly.

Mansaku Nakao : I made two depths—shallow and deep—and two sizes as well, large and small.

Hanada: Are these in white porcelain?

Mansaku Nakao : I think I’ll start with white porcelain.

Hanada: The form itself is already quite intricate.

Mansaku Nakao : More than that, while there isn’t as much white porcelain around as there used to be, I think there are still many people who love it. Even when I talk with chefs, a lot of them are looking for good white porcelain.

On White Porcelain

Hanada: Your white porcelain has a soft, almost creamy quality to it, with a lot of character.

Mansaku Nakao : Personally, I’m not fond of the overly crisp and austere type. I use natural materials such as ash from Toona wood, chestnut bark ash, and oak ash. Without those, you can’t achieve truly good white porcelain. If you start cutting corners thinking, “It won’t make much difference,” you’ll never make something exceptional.

Hanada: So those details are important.

Mansaku Nakao : There are things that people probably can’t see at first glance, aren’t there? What’s important is what you choose to do in those unseen areas.

Hanada: So what would you use these for? Starting with the larger one…

Mansaku Nakao : Sashimi, perhaps. And the smaller one could be used for delicacies or appetizers.

Noriko Nakao(wife) : I think they’d also be lovely for traditional Japanese sweets.

Ideas Come at the Last Minute

Hanada: You’ve also made several pitchers for us. They’re very useful in summer when people drink plenty of cold barley tea and water.

Mansaku Nakao : Up until now, my designs were more like enlarged pouring bowls, so they felt better suited for sauces and dressings.

Hanada: Are you planning to decorate the pitchers as well?

Mansaku Nakao : Yes, I’ll decorate them too.

Hanada: What kind of decoration do you think they’ll have?

Mansaku Nakao : …… I can do just about anything.

Hanada: (laughs)

Noriko Nakao : That’s because Mansaku comes up with those ideas right at the last minute. (laughs)

Tricolore

Mansaku Nakao : This year, Hanada’s featured recommendation ended up being the Tricolore series.
(For this exhibition, we used a Tricolore oval plate in the promotional postcard.)

Hanada: We also requested some smaller pieces.

Mansaku Nakao : There are six or seven different Tricolore designs. I made small plates, chopstick rests, and oval plates in both large and small sizes.

Hanada: I’d like customers to choose according to their own lifestyle and dining habits. Something like, “Bring Tricolore into your everyday life.”

Mansaku Nakao : (laughs)

Hanada: The color palette is unlike anything else, which makes it particularly special.

How to Use Black

Hanada: The other day, I was talking with Hanako Kusaka. Mansaku, you often incorporate black into your Paper Balloon plates, don’t you? Looking at the finished piece, people might simply think, “Oh, there’s some black in it.” But I think it’s remarkable that you conceived the idea of adding black where there was originally nothing.
After the fact, it’s easy to explain that “the black tightens the composition and gives the whole piece a sense of balance,” but coming up with the idea and successfully bringing it into form is truly impressive.

Mansaku Nakao : That’s because I’m always making things right on the edge between success and failure. You can’t be seeking stability or safety all the time.
If you stop trying things because you think, “It might not work,” you’ll never accomplish anything. And if you decide from the outset that “it has to be this way,” your work will only become more limited.

Noriko Nakao : The colors used on the Paper Balloon plates are all colors that nobody else would think of using.

Mansaku Nakao : People only see the pieces that turned out well. There are countless failures behind them. (laughs)

Hanada: Perhaps when you’ve reached your level, failures stop bothering you after a while.

Mansaku Nakao : Oh, they still bother me. (laughs) But I think I’ve failed ten times more often than I’ve succeeded. (laughs)

Noriko Nakao : Mansaku tends to try things the moment an idea occurs to him.

Mansaku Nakao : And when you try something, even if that particular idea doesn’t work out, it often leads to new insights.

The Excitement Around the DM

Mansaku Nakao : This year’s promotional postcard is quite interesting.

Hanada: We were all discussing what to do for your postcard this year when someone casually suggested, “It might be interesting to place a baguette directly on this plate.” The moment they said it, everyone around them got more excited about the idea than the person who suggested it. (laughs) The person who proposed it looked as if they were wondering whether it was really a good idea. We asked a local bakery to bake the bread to match the shape of the plate.

Edo Lattice

Hanada: This design is very clean and eye-catching as well.

Mansaku Nakao : I wanted to give it a stylish name, so I arbitrarily called it “Edo Lattice.”

Noriko Nakao : Entirely on your own. (laughs)

Hanada: Well, someone had to name it. (laughs)

Wanting to Be Immersed in Work

Hanada: Is there anything you’d particularly like to focus on going forward?

Mansaku Nakao : Lately, I’ve felt like spending entire days completely immersed in my work.

Hanada: Are you still working all the time?

Mansaku Nakao : Yes. I work even after Sunday dinner.

Hanada: I see.

Mansaku Nakao : Long ago, when I used to read a great deal, I came across a line in a collection of poems by Rilke about wanting to fully use up the abundance of time one is given. That passage stayed with me. I think that’s where it comes from. Life is about how you manage and spend the time you’ve been given.
Regardless of the outcome, I want to give it everything I’ve got. I don’t want to stay in one place. I want to try many different things. Even after working this long, there are still far more things I haven’t done than things I have.

Hanada: It seems you’ve been influenced by books, music, and many other things.

Mansaku Nakao : Absolutely. That’s why you need to study and learn when you’re young. When you’re young, everything soaks in like water into sand. Before you know it, it accumulates somewhere inside you.

Dreams and Aspirations

Hanada: I hope you’ll continue working energetically for many years to come.

Mansaku Nakao : I think it’s probably over once the desire to do this or that disappears and all that’s left is inertia.

Hanada: Does that connect to having dreams and aspirations? It may sound idealistic, but I think that’s something this profession needs.

Mansaku Nakao : I like Steve Jobs’ words: “Stay hungry, stay foolish.” I interpret them as meaning that when you’re young, you should pursue learning with all the ambition you can muster. Who cares if people think you’re foolish?

A Nostalgic Look Back

Hanada: Your old colleagues from Kutani Seiyo all seem to be doing well these days.

Mansaku Nakao : That’s right. Let me show you something interesting. Just a moment.

Noriko Nakao : I hope he doesn’t come back with something strange again. (laughs)

Mansaku Nakao : Here it is—an issue of Croissant magazine from about forty years ago when Kutani Seiyo’s pottery was featured.

Hanada: You’ve kept it in excellent condition.

Mansaku Nakao : Pure coincidence.

Hanada: Wait, is this Mr. Hata? It says “Producer.”

Mansaku Nakao : That’s right. And here’s Mitsuo Fujitsuka. These are Kouetsu Hayashi and Kyoko Hayashi.
And there’s Kiyoshi Shimizu from Hotaru Kiln and Yutaka Umino as well.

Noriko Nakao : Is that you in the rubber boots, Mansaku?

Mansaku Nakao : Yes.

Noriko Nakao : So you’ve liked rubber boots ever since then.

Hanada: (laughs)

Calculations…

Hanada: Do you have any words of advice for younger ceramic artists?

Mansaku Nakao : …

Hanada: Nothing? (laughs)

Mansaku Nakao : Well, I’d like them to become deeply absorbed in all sorts of things.

Hanada: In other words, “Lose yourself in it rather than calculating everything”?

Mansaku Nakao : You can calculate if you want, but reality will always outrun your calculations.

Hanada: (laughs)

Mansaku Nakao : Besides, it’s a bit too clever for its own good. If you’re going to calculate, you’d better do it exceptionally well. If people can tell you’re calculating, then you haven’t calculated enough. In that case, you’re better off not calculating at all.

Always Welcome

Hanada: Many younger artists are fans of your interviews. They find them encouraging. Several have even said they’d like to meet you.

Noriko Nakao : For all that, we never hear from them. (laughs)

Mansaku Nakao : Don’t say that.

Noriko Nakao : Please tell them they’re welcome anytime.

Hanada: I will. (laughs) Well then, best wishes for the exhibition.

Mansaku Nakao : Thank you.

Hanada: Shohei, best wishes to you as well.

Shohei Nakao(eldest son): Thank you very much.

A Message from Mansaku Nakao to Our Customers…

In preparation for his solo exhibition, Mansaku Nakao kindly prepared handwritten calligraphy pieces and chopstick sleeves.
Each one was individually written by hand.
They were presented to customers who purchased Mansaku Nakao’s works either at our Kudan shop or through our online shop.
(Please note that the sake cup shown in the calligraphy photograph was not included as a gift.)
The offer was available only while supplies lasted.
*This promotion has now ended.

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