The Different Techniques Japanese Craftsmen Use for Ceramics

I) Iro‑e (Coloring Ceramics)

Japanese word for color is iro. In ceramics, iro‑e describes a method where craftsmen paint motifs on glazed pottery. They use colored glazes like red, yellow, and green made with lead. These colors, known as uwa‑enogu, are painted on already glazed and fired earthenware or porcelain. Then the pieces go back into the kiln at a lower temperature, around 800 °C. This lets the surface colors fuse gently into the underglaze.

Though this approach began in China in the 12th century, it spread to clear‑glazed porcelain by the 14th century. In Japan, Sakaida Kakiemon (1596 -666) brought the technique to Arita, Saga prefecture, around 1640. That art style became known as Imari ware. In early Edo-period Japan, people called it aka‑e because red dominated. It also goes by names like uwa‑etsuke and gosai. Craftsmen used it on white‑glazed and fired earthenware, calling it iro‑e touki. This method continues today in Kyoto pottery, often called Kyo‑yaki.

 

 

2) Nerikomi (Marbled Clay Technique)

Nerikomi literally means kneading. It’s a process where different colored clays are mixed or marbled to form patterns throughout the clay body. Another term is neriage, though that usually refers to mixing colors on a potter’s wheel. The technique itself dates back centuries. It shows up in Egyptian and Chinese pottery, and Roman ceramics adopted it. In 18th‑ and 19th‑century England, potters called it agateware.

Japanese examples appear in the Momoyama period (1568 to 1600) and Edo period (1603 to 1868). You also find it in folk crafts, known as mingei. The style saw a revival in Japan between roughly 1978 and 1995. Potters like Aida Yusuke and Matsui Kousei led the resurgence. Yusuke even appeared in a TV ad for Nescafé, featuring his nerikomi coffee cups, and the term grew popular.

Tang dynasty China in the 7th century already used the idea. They had different characters to name surface versus structural marbling. Nerikomi makes patterns run deep inside clay blocks. It works like the millefiori glass technique. A block is built with a design, then sliced into slabs. Those slices repeat the pattern or get shaped into larger pottery.

 

 

3) Sancai Ceramic Technique: Triple‑Color Glaze from Tang China

Sancai means three colors in Chinese. Craftsmen used it on pottery and figurines, mostly in brown, green, and creamy white. It became popular during the Tang dynasty, from 618 to 907 CE. This style first appeared around 700 CE and is often called Tang Sancai. In the West, dealers once nicknamed it egg‑and‑spinach because of its mix of green, yellow, and white tones.

The Tang Sancai method shows off ancient Chinese glaze skills. These pieces are low‑temperature glazed ceramics from Tang times. While yellow, green, and white stand out most, artisans also used brown, blue, and black glazes. Because many pieces were found at Luoyang, the style got the name Luoyang Tang Sancai.

Sancai uses lead‑glazed earthenware. It required two firings, but stayed cheaper and simpler than porcelain or celadon. The flexibility let potters make large tomb figures, often built from moulded parts fired separately and joined later. They also made smaller burial vessels. A distinctive form is the small three‑footed offering tray, about 18 to 40 cm wide. These trays had more refined patterns than bigger pieces.

The creamy white either came from the clay’s natural tone under a clear glaze or a white slip coat. Brown and green were from adding metal oxides to the lead glaze. Blue and black appeared too. The blue glaze used cobalt, which was imported and costly, so it shows up mostly on smaller works.

These ceramics used white clay shaped into a vessel or figure. Artisans coated it in colored glaze and fired it at about 800 °C. Lead oxide served as the main flux in the glaze, often mixed with quartz in a 3 to 1 ratio. Potters achieved rich polychrome glaze by adding copper for green, iron for brownish yellow, and sometimes manganese or cobalt for blue.

 

How Sancai Ceramics Evolved: Kilns, Burial Wares, and Later Influence

At kiln sites in Tongchuan, Neiqui in Hebei, and Gongxian in Henan, the clay used for sancai burial pottery matched the materials Tang potters worked with. These ceramics were fired at lower temperatures than the whitewares made at the same time. Large burial figures, like the well-known Tang tomb statues of people, camels, and horses, were built in sections. Craftsmen used molds to form the parts, then joined them with clay slip. After assembly, some details were carved by hand to add subtle variations and give the figures more character.

When multiple glazes were used together, they often melted into each other at the edges. That blending gave the pieces their signature look. Outside of the more precise offering trays, where colors stayed inside molded outlines, most sancai pieces were glazed loosely. The colors were splashed, spotted, and sometimes painted without much concern for the shape underneath. On many vessels and figures, the glaze didn’t follow any set pattern. It wasn’t meant to match specific body parts or reliefs.

Many of the design ideas came from textiles, jewelry, and metalwork. Some of the visual themes seen in sancai reliefs or painted decorations had been borrowed from other crafts. The white or buff body of sancai pottery was made using secondary kaolins and fire clays that fired to a light tone. This northern Chinese tradition followed earlier developments in green-glazed ware from the Han dynasty, which ran from 25 to 220 CE. Brown glaze also existed during that period, but it was rare to see both used on the same piece.

After the Han, there was a long pause in the use of these lead-based glazes. For almost 400 years, they were mostly abandoned, and that gap still puzzles many experts. Most burial pieces made during that time were painted with pigments instead of fired glazes. Those pigments have often faded or flaked away over time. Still, a small number of fired pieces survived that show there was a faint link between Han and Tang traditions.

Some early signs of sancai show up in Northern Qi tomb ceramics from around 550 to 577 CE. These include green-splashed ware with a porcelain-like body. At first, these were thought to be Tang creations, but they actually came earlier. The full use of three-color sancai appeared just before the end of the 7th century. But by the mid-8th century, production of tomb figures dropped off sharply. That happened after major upheavals like the An Lushan Rebellion in 755 and the Tibetan invasion of northern China in 763. Even after the figures stopped, vessels in the sancai style continued to be made for another 50 years or so.

The style didn’t stay gone forever. During the late Tang and into the Liao dynasty from 907 to 1125, sancai came back. The Liao were a non-Han dynasty ruling the far north. They used sancai mainly for large temple items. Life-sized luohan figures were made for Buddhist temples, often displayed in special luohan halls. Few of those figures survived the Cultural Revolution. A well-known set, called the Yixian luohans, ended up in Western museums. These were unusual because they were built with iron rods inside for support. Some temples also had large guardian figures in sancai glaze standing near altars or shrines.

Sancai didn’t stay within China. It traveled along the Silk Road, influencing pottery in Syria, Cyprus, and Italy between the 13th and 15th centuries. The style also took root in Japanese ceramics, including Nagayo ware and other East Asian traditions.

During the Qing dynasty, from 1644 to 1910, sancai was revived as part of a larger return to older styles. Emperors appreciated the antique look, and skilled craftsmen at Jingdezhen brought sancai back using fine porcelain. They often used bold splashes and strong color patches to create a dappled surface. These were not made to look like ancient relics. Some even included reign marks, though these were sometimes fake and referred only to earlier centuries like the 1400s.

 

 

4) Saiyū Glazing: Vibrant Color Transformation in Kutani Ceramics

Saiyū glazing comes from Tokuda Yasokichi III, born 1933, passed 2009. It uses brightly colored glazes that flow together. Those colors form smooth transitions, from deep blue to purple, green or yellow. He created this modern poking-fun-at-tradition aesthetic by accident. He was playing with high firing temps when the different pigments fused, creating hazy washes that look like an aurora or exploding star. Japan recognized it as an Important Intangible Cultural Heritage in 1997, calling it a national art treasure.

Yasokichi III came from the Kutani pottery family. His grandfather, Yasokichi I, brought back old glazes from 17th-century ko-kutani ware. Those use enamel over a baked base. Yasokichi III focused on the blue overglaze tradition called aote, sticking with green, yellow, purple and deep navy. He kept experimenting till saiyū was born. He passed the craft on to his daughter, Yasokichi IV, born 1961, before he died. She continues the line and safeguards the technique.

 

 

5) Hakuji: Timeless White Porcelain

Hakuji means white porcelain in Japanese. It mimics Chinese Dehua porcelain originally, but today it covers all plain white Japanese ceramics. Think tea bowls, cups, teapots, even simple vessels. Hakuji was also used for religious figurines, mostly Buddhist but sometimes Christian or everyday figures. That clean white surface fit well with altar use and ceremonies.

Dehua porcelain, from Fujian Province in China, came to Japan long ago. The Japanese called it hakugorai, literally Korean white ware. That’s not because it came from Korea, but because anything from the Korean peninsula was lumped under the term Korai. Fujian kilns near Taiwan made white porcelain for maritime Asia, including Japan. Lots of Buddhist statues and altar dishes were shipped before trade restrictions in the mid‑1600s.

These wares are linked to funerals and death. That may explain why modern Japanese feel less drawn to it, despite their love for other Chinese ceramic arts. But Hakuji remains part of Japan’s ceramic legacy, appreciated for its unadorned purity and calm form.

Many examples of Hakuji and white Dehua porcelain made for Japan eventually ended up in Western collections. These pieces include Buddhist statues with stylized robes, showing clear influence from the Kano School of painting. That school shaped much of Japanese art during the Tokugawa era. It's obvious that many Dehua items were made specifically to match Japanese tastes.

You can see this in plain white incense burners and other ritual tools. Some Dehua figurines show the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy holding a child. These figures look almost identical to the Christian Madonna and Child. In Japan, they were known as Maria Kannon. Hidden Christians in Tokugawa Japan used them during the ban on Christianity. These statues were a way to keep practicing in secret.

White porcelain Buddhist figures were also made in Japan, especially at the Hirado kilns. There’s a clear way to tell Japanese and Chinese pieces apart. Japanese statues usually have closed bottoms, except for a small air hole. Hirado ware often shows a faint orange color where the clay was left unglazed.

In the early 1600s, Nabeshima Naoshige of Saga brought Korean potters to Japan. One of them was Ri Sampei, also known as Yi Sam Pyong. In 1616, they found high-quality white clay in Arita. That clay became the base for Japan’s white porcelain industry. Arita continued making Hakuji into the Meiji period, and it’s still produced today.

Modern designers like Masahiro Mori have created updated versions of Hakuji ware. Seigo Nakamura and Inoue Manji also work with white porcelain in Arita. Even the retailer Muji released a Hakuji line, made with fine Amakusa stone clay using traditional methods.

In 1995, Hakuji was recognized as an Intangible Cultural Property of Japan.

A related porcelain style is called seihakuji. This glaze has a faint icy-blue tint instead of being pure white. The Chinese version is called Qingbai ware. That glaze leans a bit more green and is a type of celadon. Qingbai began during the Song dynasty. The technique starts with biscuit firing the piece, then adding an iron-rich glaze. Once refired, it turns a cool blue tone.

Several Japanese artists are known for working in seihakuji. These include Fukami Sueharu, Suzuki Osamu, and Yagi Akira. One of the most respected names in this field is Kaiji Tsukamoto. He was named a Living National Treasure in 1983 for his seihakuji porcelain work.

 

 

6) Seto Sometsuke: The Story of Blue and White Porcelain in Seto

Origins of Blue and White Porcelain

Blue and white porcelain started in China during the first half of the 14th century. Sailors and traders carried it across the world through Arabian ports. Many of these ceramics still survive along ancient trade routes. A notable collection lives in Istanbul’s Topkapi Palace. After seeing Chinese wares, many cultures began crafting their own blue and white pottery.

Arita’s Breakthrough

In early 17th century Kyushu, Arita potters successfully made porcelain. The quality quickly matched Chinese imports. When Ming Dynasty China faltered in the mid‑17th century, European traders sought alternatives. Arita fired thousands of pieces for export. These became known as Imari ware, named for the shipping port.

Seto’s Drive to Compete

Seto had a long pottery tradition. When porcelain from Kyushu grew in fame, Seto potters tried to match it. They painted earthenware with the whitest clay they could find. But success in true porcelain took another 200 years.

Porcelain Arrives in Seto

In the early 19th century, Kato Tamikichi traveled from Kyushu to Seto. He brought round kilns fueled with wood ash. That sparked a major leap forward. Soon, Seto potters mastered porcelain making. Blue and white became the town’s signature.

Seto’s Style Shines

Seto sometsuke stands apart. Painters focused on nature (landscapes, birds, flowers) drawn with fine, realistic strokes. The technique mokkotsu, taught by a visiting Southern Song ink painter, shaped Seto’s modern style. Mokkotsu uses ink shading without outlines. Brushwork is smooth and single‑stroke.

Materials and Technique in Seto

Seto artisans mix weathered granite called saba with kibushi and gairomen clay. They sketch nature scenes in deep indigo blue. The result is delicate and lifelike. Seto sometsuke reflects a finesse found nowhere else.

Earlier Seto Styles

Before mastering porcelain, Seto potters made blue and white earthenware labeled Totai sometsuke. Those designs were also popular. But they lacked the refinement of later porcelain work.

Global Praise and Artistic Influence

During the Meiji period, Seto blue and white porcelain earned high praise at international expositions held overseas. Its lifelike detail and natural themes impressed critics and collectors around the world. The fine brushwork and focus on nature even influenced Art Nouveau, which took off in France around the same time.

The Fall of Tradition Through Mechanization

As time moved on, Japan moved toward mass production. Factory systems replaced much of the handcraft work. Labor-saving methods like plaster casting, copperplate transfer, and print painting became the norm. These new tools made things faster but led to a loss of the original hand-painted style. The unique Seto sometsuke technique began to disappear during this industrial wave.

A Return to Handmade Beauty

In recent years, there's been a slow but steady return to valuing handmade work. More people want pieces that show care and skill, not just mass-made products. That change has helped bring traditional Seto porcelain back into focus. People now see the value in things that are crafted by hand and finished with a personal touch.

Seto Sometsuke Becomes a Recognized Craft

In 1997, Seto sometsuke ware was officially designated as a traditional Japanese craft. This designation came from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. It happened thanks to the steady efforts of potters who never gave up on the old ways. Craftspeople came together, formed an association, and traveled to Tokyo. They brought records, samples, and proof of their tradition. They spoke with officials, explained their work, and eventually got the recognition that honored their dedication.

What Qualifies as a Traditional Craft?

The government listed five strict rules a product must meet to earn the title “traditional craft.” First, the item has to be made mainly for everyday use. Second, most of its production must be done by hand. Third, the technique must come from long-standing traditions. Fourth, the raw materials must be ones that were used in the past. Fifth, a meaningful number of craftspeople in a specific area must still produce it today.

What Makes Seto Sometsuke Special

Seto sometsuke stands out because of its detailed underglaze painting. Artists paint directly onto the surface of the bisque-fired porcelain using fine brushes. They use gosu pigment, a type of deep indigo blue. The subjects are nature-based: birds, insects, flowers, and scenery. These are intricate images. The firing process gives the surface a soft, moist look that’s unique to Seto.

Steps in the Crafting Process

The clay used comes from Seto’s region, including Sanage feldspar and clays from Motoyama. Potters form the pieces by wheel casting, slip casting, or hand molding. Designs are added through carving, gluing, or direct brushwork. The pottery is bisque fired before any color is applied. Underpainting involves several brush techniques, including line work and ink brushing. Only gosu, rust red, and a few other traditional pigments are used.

Once decorated, the glaze is applied. Lime, ash, celadon, or lapis lazuli glazes are commonly chosen. After that, the piece is fired again. Some works also get overglaze decoration, such as gold or silver touches. But the signature look of Seto sometsuke always comes back to that deep indigo painting, laid down with skill and subtlety.

 

Main Painting Techniques in Seto Ceramics

Tsuketate: Free Brushwork Without Outlines

Tsuketate is a technique where the artist paints freely using the full movement and pressure of the brush. There are no outlines. The painter lets the brush flow naturally, relying on the motion and feel of each stroke. This style captures movement and energy. It demands confidence and a steady hand.

Kotsugaki: Fine Line Drawing

Kotsugaki is the exact opposite of tsuketate. Instead of using broad, loose strokes, the artist outlines the subject carefully using a fine brush. Every edge is defined. Some artists prefer this detailed, structured approach. Others skip it entirely. Whether it's used depends on the style of the individual potter.

Dami: Filling with Depth and Gradation

Dami involves painting large sections with a thick dami brush. This creates layers of color and soft transitions. Seto uses two main ways to handle the brush. In the Arita style, the base of the brush is pressed with a finger while adjusting the amount of pigment (called gosu) using a pointing method. In the Seto style, the artist grips the bamboo handle and controls the flow by tilting both the brush and its base. Which style someone uses usually comes from how they were taught at a ceramics school or by a mentor. Getting a smooth finish without streaks or uneven layering takes intense focus and solid technique.

Fukizumi: Mist and Spray Effects

Fukizumi uses sprayed gosu to make misty patterns or subtle shading. There are three ways to apply it. One method involves flicking a brush full of gosu so it splashes lightly like a spray bottle. Another uses a thick straw or tube to blow the pigment onto the surface, like a blowgun. A third method uses a stencil, mesh net, or even an airbrush to create fine dotted textures. This approach is good for soft backgrounds or gradients.

Kakiotoshi: Scratching to Reveal White

Kakiotoshi means scratching off applied pigment. The artist uses a sharp tool like a needle or fingernail to remove part of the painted gosu and expose the white surface underneath. It adds texture and lets the white contrast pop through the design.

Underglaze and Overglaze Techniques

There are two ways to paint ceramic designs. Underglaze painting comes first. The potter paints directly on the bisque-fired clay using underglaze pigment. After that, a transparent glaze is applied over it, and the piece is fired again. This locks the design beneath the glaze and gives it a clean, sealed look.

Overglaze painting is done differently. The pottery is first glazed and fired. Then overglaze paint is added on top of the already glossy surface. These paints come in many colors, including metallics like gold and red. Once painted, the piece goes back into the kiln at a lower temperature.

Most Seto ceramics use underglaze painting. But there are exceptions. Artists like Kamei Hanji and Kawamoto Hansuke created pieces with overglaze decoration. Some even used red enamel or applied gold leaf to their work.

Gosu Underglaze for Blue and White Porcelain

Gosu is a key underglaze paint for blue and white porcelain. It’s made from cobalt oxide mixed with metals like iron, manganese, nickel, and chromium. Even though everything’s called blue, gosu offers a range of deep to pale blue tones. In Seto, they used two types: Karagosu and Jigosu. Karagosu came through Nagasaki merchants and the Nagasaki Magistrate. Jigosu had two versions known as sand art and goro‑e, both stored by the pottery guild. Seto recognized twelve types of Jigosu, which circulated widely outside the local domain. Karagosu was more premium; Seto records show eighteen types that cost nearly three times as much as Jigosu.

Shoenji Underglaze Paint

Shoenji is another underglaze paint used mainly at the end of the Edo period. It’s high quality and has gold in its mix. After firing, it turns rose or pale pink. Seto potters used it on flower petals, cloud motifs, and inscriptions. Craftsmen like the Kawamoto family, Jihei the third, Hansuke, and Masukichi, favored it.

Yurikou Underglaze Red

Yurikou is a red underglaze paint, born in Jingdezhen, China, during the Yuan dynasty. Its pigment is copper, which turns red during firing. It’s tricky. If the kiln is too cool, the paint goes black. Too hot, and it bleeds. In Seto, potters experimented with it in Jihei’s inscriptions.

Copperplate Transfer Printing by Jihei III

Jihei the Third introduced copperplate transfer printing in Seto. This method came from mass‑production ceramics, but he used it for distinct Western‑style designs. His pieces stood out. The technique became so popular that his student, Kato Shinshichi, was allowed to open a kiln in Kawana, Nagoya, as long as he used copperplate transfer printing. That shows how well received it was.

Mugi‑wara Pattern: Wheat‑Ear Stripes

One Seto pattern from the late Edo era looks like vertical stripes, like wheat ears in the breeze. It was common in the Shinano and Akazu districts. Potters made it from red clay called Akaraku. Later, they also used porcelain clay, producing blue and white versions known as Seiraku.

 

 

7) Yūri‑kinsai (Gold Leaf Overglaze Technique)

Yūri‑kinsai means applying gold leaf under a transparent glaze. Craftsmen use both thick and thin gold leaf layers. They carve or cut these into shapes before firing. The leaf goes on lacquer covering the vessel. Then they glaze over it and fire at low heat. This melts the leaf gently and burns off extra lacquer. Some pieces get two soda glaze coats, each fired separately. It can take up to six firings to finish. The different gold thicknesses make the design stand out under the glaze.

This method isn’t just for gold. Craftsmen also use silver in a version called yūri‑ginsai and platinum in yūri‑hakkinnsai. In 2011, Japan officially recognized yūri‑kinsai as an Intangible Cultural Property.

Modern Kutani ware often shows refined yūri‑kinsai designs. The Kinzangama kiln in Komatsu, Ishikawa began in 1906, run by the Yoshita family. Today third‑generation master Minori Yoshita (born 1932) is a Living National Treasure for his work.

Nagoya‑born artist Hakuko Ono (1915-1996) worked in Ureshino, Saga during the 1970s. She became known for her porcelain yūri‑kinsai. Her son, Jiro Ono (1953-2010), carried on the tradition and also worked in kinrande.

Takuro Furukawa (born 1979) belongs to the Japan Kōgei Association. He specializes in yūri‑hakkinnsai, using platinum instead of gold.