Ogata Kenzan

Who was Ogata Kenzan?

Ogata Kenzan, originally Ogata Shinsei, and also known by the pseudonym Shisui, was a Japanese potter and painter, a younger brother of Ogata Korin. He was born in Kyoto in a rich marchant family and died in Edo. He learned from the famous potter Nonomura Ninnsei and made his own kiln. In 1712 a nobleman began patronizing his kiln, he moved to the east area of Kyoto. He was one of the greatest ceramicists of the Tokugawa era. In 1713, he moved to Edo.

Ogata Kenzan produced a distinctive style of freely brushed grasses, blossoms, and birds as decorative motifs for pottery. His pieces were noted for their perfect relation between design and shape. He often collaborated on the decoration of pottery with his older brother, Ogata Korin, after whom the style known as Rimpa was named.

Bernard Leach, the famous studio potter, wrote a book about Ogata Kenzan in 1966 entitled Kenzan and his Tradition, published by Faber & Faber in London.