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stream and bank. The flowers dominate by their diagonal regularity and contrast, utilizing the strategy of the divided ground— light on dark, dark on light. But this calculated and complex design strategy is carried out with a relaxed and spontaneous execution. That contrast itself references the figure-ground contrast and the inherent paradox between the coolness suggested by the Chinese legend of the stream and the warmth of the coals in the handwarmer. Few potters today attempt such complex references, in part, I suppose because we have very little discussion about how long we might live if we drink from dew-fed streams. We may be poorer for that.

     Equally potent is the way these small, modest pots exceed their size by their attitude. In the best of them, there is an off-hand, confident insouciance that is breathtaking. To me, it is difficult to make small pots that are this good.

A third virtue I would suggest is survivorship. Most of these pots, being used and appreciated, have undergone the inevitable breakage, chipping, cracking and staining that all pots ultimately endure. Yet, for the most part, these are more beautiful than the day they came from the kiln. Their glazes have been softened and the broken parts repaired with gold lacquer. They have taken on the patina of a perfectly ripe pear, soft and full.

A square dish, possibly by Ogata Kenzan and Ogata Korin, has these attributes. His brushwork speaks for itself. As an indication of the attention to detail of Wilson’s text, in the photograph of this piece, a lacquer repair appears in the lower right corner of the dish, and it reappears in the lower left in the photo of the back of the piece, as if one were holding the plate and turned it over, just like a page in a book.

Such congruence is typical of the sensitivity that marks every part of this exhibition. That includes the site. The Kenzan works are immediately adjacent to an exhibition of formal Chinese celadons. Their size and perfection serve to highlight the informality of the Kenzan ware. Each collection enhances the other. There are qualities in pots that can be appreciated by anyone who loves them, no matter the country or century.

Art History
There is another, completely different exhibition here as well; however, it is available only to Japanese scholars or people who take the trouble to read and consider the text. Wilson and his collaborators have brought hard work, clear thinking, and scientific processes and technology to this collection. They reveal some astounding insights about the meaning and origins of these works.  Beyond the first Kenzan, we are shown that this tradition spans centuries, and restates and reinvents itself from time to time. I liken this tradition to American jazz; it defies easy explanation, but speaks with character and grace to an audience much larger than the country of its origin.

A few of these findings are humorous. For example, some of these pots made in the later part of the tradition proudly bear the signature “Kenzan,” except that it is misspelled. Wilson details the literary content of these images and how they were passed down, and sometimes distorted or diluted.

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