Kutani Ware: Colour from Kaga
Kutani is the porcelain of the Kaga domain, today Ishikawa prefecture on the Sea of Japan. Where Arita porcelain is often defined by cobalt blue, Kutani is defined by enamel colour: thick, glassy greens, yellows, purples and deep blues, and later a brilliant red and gold. It remains one of the most recognisable of all Japanese wares.
Ko-Kutani, the old ware
In the mid-seventeenth century, under the Maeda lords of Kaga, a kiln was founded at the village of Kutani. The bold enamelled dishes attributed to it are known as Ko-Kutani, old Kutani. Production stopped within a few decades, and scholars still debate how much of the ware called Ko-Kutani was made in Kaga and how much in Arita. Either way, these large dishes, with their daring compositions and heavy enamels, are among the most admired ceramics of the Edo period.
The revival kilns
Early in the nineteenth century, Kaga set out to revive the ware. A sequence of kilns followed, each with its own manner.
- Kasugayama. Founded in 1807 with the help of the Kyoto potter Aoki Mokubei, it made Chinese-style wares.
- Yoshidaya. Opened in 1824, it revived the Ko-Kutani palette of green, yellow, purple and blue, covering the whole surface and leaving out red. This style is called aote, green Kutani.
- Iidaya. Associated with the painter Iidaya Hachirōemon, it covered pieces with fine red drawing heightened with gold, known as akae.
- Kutani Shōza. Kutani Shōza (1816–1883) combined these traditions into saishiki kinrande, full colour with gold, the style that made Kutani famous abroad.
Japan Kutani and the Meiji export
From the 1870s, Kutani workshops produced vast quantities of vases, plates, tea sets and figures for Western buyers, often marked Dai Nihon Kutani or carrying the name of a painter or workshop. Quality ranges from the routine to the exceptional. The finest Meiji pieces are painted with astonishing density, with figures, birds and brocade borders in red and gold.
Reading the mark
Most Kutani carries the two characters 九谷, Kutani, painted on the base, often within a square and often accompanied by a workshop or painter's name. A fuku mark, borrowed from Ko-Kutani, also appears on many pieces. Marks help with attribution but are rarely enough on their own: the quality of drawing, the depth of the enamels and the evenness of the gilding tell you more.
Modern masters
Kutani remains a living tradition. Two of its potters have been designated Living National Treasures: Tokuda Yasokichi III, for his luminous graduated glazes, known as saiyū, and Yoshita Minori, for yūri-kinsai, gold leaf patterns set beneath and within the glaze. Signed pieces by recognised artists normally come in a fitted box, signed and sealed on the lid.
Condition and care
Enamels sit on the surface and can flake where they are thick, especially on older pieces. Gold wears with handling. Look for retouching under a raking light, and keep pieces away from abrasive cleaning. Display them out of direct sun and wash by hand only.