UPCOMING EXHIBITION
The Art of Living
Fine Japanese Ceramics & Art for Dining, Kaiseki, and Chanoyu
October 29 – December 17, 2026
The celebrated ceramic artist Kitaōji Rosanjin famously described tableware as “cuisine’s kimono.” Like a kimono, utsuwa (器)—a term meaning vessels, commonly used to refer to tableware—frames and complements what it holds, enhancing the food without competing with it. A vessel’s color, shape, texture, and decoration can make a dish appear more vibrant, delicate, or inviting. And because many Japanese dishes are served in portions small enough to hold, the experience is especially intimate: diners engage with the vessel as well as the food, bringing both close to the body.
This close attention to tableware is especially evident in Sadō (the traditional Japanese tea ceremony): particularly Kaiseki and Chanoyu. In each, vessels are chosen with care for the food, the occasion, the guest, and the season. A meal unfolds through a succession of bowls, plates, trays, sake cups, and containers for sweets or water, each contributing to the rhythm of hospitality. A carefully chosen vessel can express what words cannot: that the host has considered the moment, the season, and the person gathered at the table.
The Japanese table brings together binary qualities: function and beauty, nature and craftsmanship, individuality and harmony, tradition and everyday life. A ceramic vessel carries food, but it can also evoke the season, reveal the maker’s character, bear traces of its own history, and express the intentions of the person who selected it.
Celebrating the art of functional ceramics by celebrated contemporary Japanese artists, our forthcoming exhibition The Art of Living is presented in three parts. The first explores everyday dining through tea cups, platters, bowls, and modern style Japanese tableware. The second turns to kaiseki and the art of the seasonal table. The third enters the tea room, where tea bowls, water jars, and flower vases shape the setting for chanoyu. Together, these three parts reveal how Japanese ceramics bring beauty, meaning, and seasonal tastes to the art of living.
We look forward to welcoming you soon!
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PAST AUTUMN ASIA WEEK NEW YORK EXHIBITION
Kiyomizu Rokubei: 250 years of ceramic expression from Kyoto
September 10–24, 2026
Opening Reception with Kiyomizu Rokubei VIII (Masahiro) in attendance: Thursday, September 10, 5-7pm
Special AWNY Autumn Hours (Sept 10-18): Daily, 11am-5pm
Dai Ichi Arts is pleased to present “Kiyomizu Rokubei: 250 Years of Ceramic Expression from Kyoto,” presenting works by the fifth through eighth generations of one of Japan’s most distinguished ceramic dynasties. Based in Kyoto since the mid-Edo period, the Rokubei lineage has endured through continual reinvention, with each generation responding to the artistic and technological developments of its time. The exhibition traces this evolution from the fifth and sixth generations’ experiments with glaze, painted decoration, and classical references to the sculptural, architecturally informed slab-built forms of the seventh and eighth generations. The current head of the family, Kiyomizu Rokubei VIII, Masahiro, will travel from Kyoto to attend the opening reception at Dai Ichi Arts on September 10.
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About the Gallery
Founded in 1989, Dai Ichi Arts, Ltd. is a fine art gallery dedicated to presenting modern Japanese ceramics.
The gallery is committed to presenting research-driven exhibitions, showcasing museum-quality Japanese ceramic art, and providing authoritative expertise to collectors.
Dai Ichi Arts has contributed pieces to major museums such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Art Institute of Chicago, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, the Princeton University Art Museum, and more. Our team of specialists works directly with artists, estates, and institutions to highlight the appreciation, historical depth, beauty, and cultural significance of Japanese ceramics in New York and internationally.
We welcome you to visit our website to learn more about our artists and artworks, or to contact us for more information.
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