BY NEW BUSINESS ETHIOPIA REPORTER
The Embassy of Japan in collaboration with the Japan Foundation has organized a pottery exhibition in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with the aim of enhancing understanding of Japanese arts and culture through the visual arts. 
The Exhibition, which will kick-off on September 1, 2011, will last for three weeks up to 23 September 2011, at the Modern Art Museum (Gebre Kristos Desta Center) located at Sidist Kilo adjacent to the Goethe Institute, on the premises of the Faculty of Business and Economics, Addis Ababa University.
The theme of the exhibition focuses on “vessels” to illustrate how Japanese potters understand the function of a vessel, thus reflecting the nature of Japanese pottery today. The exhibition, which is named “Japanese Pottery: the Rising Generation from Traditional Japanese Kilns”, is organized through its Cultural Exchange Program of Japanese government.
It introduces the work of a total of 35 artists active in seven traditional kiln sites in Japan, according to the press statement newbusinessethiopia.com received from the embassy. They differ in orientation, including some who carry on long traditions of pottery production while pursuing ever-richer standards in their craft, and others who seek to create individualistic works exploring new forms.
The exhibition will display original works that vary from vessels for practical use to a genre that combines creativity employing traditional techniques and shapes, and vessels that are not concerned with practicality but explore new and experimental forms.
According to Shiraishi Masami, who is the Director of Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art and wrote the introduction in the Exhibition Catalogue, the artists selected are among the most active in Japan. However, they differ in their approach to their art. Some seek to further enhance traditional techniques while working in places where pottery has been made for centuries, adding refinements in design in the effort to create even richer works of art.
The ceramic arts flourish in Japan as in few other countries. Not only is Japan home to an immense number of potters and ceramic artists, it also has a large population highly knowledgeable about and appreciative of pottery. Perhaps it is the distinct four seasons, the mild climate, and diverse terrain that have given the Japanese a special affection for utensils made from earth or clay, a basic natural material.
This exhibition will also introduce some of the promising artists working in traditional pottery areas who are producing notable contemporary works in the ceramic genre, according to the statement.
