Toshiko Takaezu with moons, 1979. Photo by Hiro. © Family of Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu with moons, 1979. Photo by Hiro. © Family of Toshiko Takaezu
This exclusive online presentation features a group of ceramic sculptures by Toshiko Takaezu (1922–2011), reflecting the artist’s lifelong pursuit of the freedom and expressive possibilities she found in working with clay.
“I was able successfully to merge the glaze as painting to the form, so that the two—painting and form—became one total and complete piece.”
—Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu, Mākaha Blue Closed Form, c. 1997
Toshiko Takaezu
Makaha Blue Closed Form, c. 1997
Porcelain with wood ash
5 3/4 x 5 x 5 inches (14.6 x 12.7 x 12.7 cm)
Takaezu treated her forms as abstract paintings in the round and is best known for her round “moons” and her oblong “closed-form” works, both of which she would typically present in groups.
Created using glazing techniques such as oxidation, reduction, and complex layering that allowed for variations and imperfections, her forms would reveal their final colors only after gas firing.
Toshiko Takaezu with works in Hawai‘i, 1987. Photo by Macario Timbal. © Family of Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu with works in Hawai‘i, 1987. Photo by Macario Timbal. © Family of Toshiko Takaezu
Inspired by a chance occurrence while trimming the rim of a pot, Takaezu began to intentionally drop tiny pieces of clay into some of her closed forms, wrapping them in paper to keep them from adhering to the interior surface during firing. Referred to as “rattles,” these fragments transformed the form into a sounding sculpture, as one can hear the noise of the loose piece when handling the vessel—an exercise encouraged by the artist.
Toshiko Takaezu, “Ocean Edge” Momo, c. 1995
Toshiko Takaezu
"Ocean Edge" Momo, c. 1995
Stoneware
20 1/8 x 13 1/2 x 13 1/2 inches (51.1 x 34.3 x 34.3 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Closed Form, c. 2005
Glazed stoneware
7 1/4 x 4 3/4 x 4 3/4 inches (18.4 x 12.1 x 12.1 cm)
“Self-contained, these orbs are like miniature universes, with their storms of color encapsulating the emotional climate of the artist’s vision at any one moment in time.”
—James Jensen, late curator of contemporary art, Honolulu Museum of Art
Installation view, The Ceramic Presence in Modern Art: Selections from the Linda Leonard Schlenger Collection and the Yale University Art Gallery, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut, 2016. Works by Takaezu are seen with paintings by Mark Rothko and Robert Motherwell
Installation view, The Ceramic Presence in Modern Art: Selections from the Linda Leonard Schlenger Collection and the Yale University Art Gallery, Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Connecticut, 2016. Works by Takaezu are seen with paintings by Mark Rothko and Robert Motherwell
Toshiko Takaezu, Pair of Copper Red Closed Forms, 1990-1999
Toshiko Takaezu
Pair of Copper Red Closed Forms, 1990-1999
Porcelain
Part 1: 6 1/4 x 4 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches (15.9 x 10.8 x 10.8 cm)
Part 2: 5 x 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches (12.7 x 11.4 x 11.4 cm)
Part 2: 5 x 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches (12.7 x 11.4 x 11.4 cm)
“For Takaezu, clay is a sentient being, alive, animate, and responsive, which, she believes, ‘has much to say.’ Her lifelong association with clay represents a lifetime of self-discovery and self-revelation. Her art is a reflection of her spirit, as she works from deep within herself.”
—Jennifer Saville, curator
Toshiko Takaezu
Double Form, 1965-1975
Stoneware
17 3/8 x 11 5/8 x 11 5/8 inches (44.1 x 29.5 x 29.5 cm)
“After many years a natural pure form arrived, one which I enjoy and also one on which I could paint.”
—Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu
Makaha Blue Closed Form, c. 1990
Porcelain
5 x 6 x 6 inches (12.7 x 15.2 x 15.2 cm)
Colors, textures, and titles recall the settings of her childhood and young adulthood spent in Hawai'i—many works reference Mānoa and Mākaha, and the glazing on some forms produced deep blues and warm earth tones that evoke the sight and feel of coastal waters and volcanic soil.
Toshiko Takaezu
Closed Form, c. 1990
Porcelain
6 1/4 x 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches (15.9 x 14 x 14 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Untitled Deep Purple “Ocean Edge” Closed Form, c. 1995
Porcelain
6 1/4 x 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches (15.9 x 14 x 14 cm_
Installation view, Women Take the Floor, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2019. Works by Takaezu are seen with paintings by Grace Hartigan and Joan Mitchell
Installation view, Women Take the Floor, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2019. Works by Takaezu are seen with paintings by Grace Hartigan and Joan Mitchell
Toshiko Takaezu, Manoa, 1987 (details)
Toshiko Takaezu
Manoa, 1987
Stoneware
27 1/2 x 23 x 23 inches (69.8 x 58.4 x 58.4 cm)
“Takaezu was inspired by historical precedents—in her case, East Asian pots and calligraphy—and found ways to transform these idioms to make them relevant to contemporary art. Most obviously, this involved sheathing her ceramics in glorious veils and supervening splashes of glaze, in implicit dialogue with Abstract Expressionism. She also activated her work in another, subtler way, by introducing loose rattles of fired clay inside her closed forms, making them into kinetic, sounding sculptures.”
—Glenn Adamson, art historian
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Installation view, Takaezu & Tawney: An Artist is a Poet, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2023. Courtesy Stephen Ironside for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
Installation view, Takaezu & Tawney: An Artist is a Poet, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2023. Courtesy Stephen Ironside for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
Toshiko Takaezu
Closed Form, c. 2002
Glazed stoneware
27 1/2 x 9 x 9 inches (69.8 x 22.9 x 22.9 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Anagama Closed Form, 1994
Anagama-fired stoneware
22 5/8 x 13 x 12 1/2 inches (57.5 x 33 x 31.8 cm)
Takaezu walking amongst her Star Series (c. 1994–2001). Photo by Tom Grotta, 1998
Takaezu walking amongst her Star Series (c. 1994–2001). Photo by Tom Grotta, 1998
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Toshiko Takaezu working in the workshop at Anderson Ranch, Snowmass Village, Colorado, 1982. Toshiko Takaezu Papers, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution
Toshiko Takaezu working in the workshop at Anderson Ranch, Snowmass Village, Colorado, 1982. Toshiko Takaezu Papers, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution
“One of the best things about clay is that I can be completely free and honest with it.… The whole process is an interplay between the clay and myself, and often the clay has much to say.”
—Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu, Closed Form, 1990-1999
Toshiko Takaezu
Closed Form, 1990-1999
Porcelain
5 3/4 x 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches (14.6 x 11.4 x 11.4 cm)
Installation view of works by Toshiko Takaezu
Installation view of works by Toshiko Takaezu
Toshiko Takaezu
Alchemy Gold Moon, c. 1990-1993
Stoneware
14 x 13 x 13 inches (35.6 x 33 x 33 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Tall Form Midnight, c. 1990-1993
Stoneware
27 x 25 x 23 inches (68.6 x 63.5 x 58.4 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Alchemy Gold Closed Form, c. 1900-1993
Stoneware
23 1/2 x 14 x 15 inches (59.7 x 35.6 x 38.1 cm)
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Installation view, works by Toshiko Takaezu, on view in Crafting America, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2021. Private collection. Photo courtesy Stephen Ironside for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
Installation view, works by Toshiko Takaezu, on view in Crafting America, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2021. Private collection. Photo courtesy Stephen Ironside for Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art
Toshiko Takaezu
“Persimmon” Moon, 1970-1989
Stoneware
21 x 23 x 22 inches (53.3 x 58.4 x 55.9 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Closed Form, 1965-1975
Stoneware
6 1/4 x 8 x 8 inches (15.9 x 20.3 x 20.3 cm)
Toshiko Takaezu
Closed Form, c. 1980
Porcelain
5 x 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches (12.7 x 14 x 14 cm)
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Installation view, The Milk of Dreams, 59th Venice Biennale, 2022. Works by Takaezu are seen displayed across from looped-wire sculptures by Ruth Asawa. Ruth Asawa artwork © 2024. Ruth Asawa Lanier, Inc./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo by Ela Bialkowska, OKNO studio. Courtesy Archivio Storico della Biennale di Venezia, ASAC
Installation view, The Milk of Dreams, 59th Venice Biennale, 2022. Works by Takaezu are seen displayed across from looped-wire sculptures by Ruth Asawa. Ruth Asawa artwork © 2024. Ruth Asawa Lanier, Inc./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo by Ela Bialkowska, OKNO studio. Courtesy Archivio Storico della Biennale di Venezia, ASAC
Installation view, The Milk of Dreams, 59th Venice Biennale, 2022. Photo by Roberto Marossi. Courtesy Archivio Storico della Biennale di Venezia, ASAC
Installation view, The Milk of Dreams, 59th Venice Biennale, 2022. Photo by Roberto Marossi. Courtesy Archivio Storico della Biennale di Venezia, ASAC
Takaezu’s work was featured in the 2022 edition of the Venice Biennale as part of Cecilia Alemani’s exhibition, The Milk of Dreams, where it shared a room with Ruth Asawa’s iconic looped-wire sculptures.
Toshiko Takaezu
Torso Form, c. 1990
Porcelain
14 3/8 x 6 x 6 inches (36.5 x 15.2 x 15.2 cm)
Concurrent with this online presentation, Takaezu’s works are on view at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in Toshiko Takaezu: Shaping Abstraction through September 29, 2024, and at The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum, New York, in Toshiko Takaezu: Worlds Within from March 20 to July 28, 2024, before traveling nationally through 2026.
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Bobby Jae Kim, Toshiko Takaezu (detail), 1997. Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Liliane and David M. Stewart Collection. Gift of Bobby Jae Kim. Image © Bobby J. Kim
Bobby Jae Kim, Toshiko Takaezu (detail), 1997. Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Liliane and David M. Stewart Collection. Gift of Bobby Jae Kim. Image © Bobby J. Kim
“You are not an artist simply because you paint or sculpt pots that cannot be used. An artist is a poet in their own medium. And when an artist produces a good piece, that work has mystery, an unsaid quality; it is alive.”
—Toshiko Takaezu
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