In the world of pottery, which has a long history, Namika Nakai is a potter who has attracted attention for her innovative style that uses distortions and cracks that would otherwise be considered taboo. She started her career as a ceramic artist with a unique background and continues to present works that are not bound by existing frameworks.We explore the roots of her style and the future shape of ceramic art that she envisions.

Pottery is originally a technique for making "vessels" for daily life using clay. In order to fulfill its function as a tool for daily life, ceramics must be durable and free from scratches and holes. In the world of pottery, where such common sense has existed for a long time, Nakai continues to present incomplete and distorted pottery.

"When I was a student, I majored in psychology.When I was little, I often asked myself, "Is the color red that I see the same as the color that my mother sees?'' How do you know they're the same color? I heard that my mother used to ask me questions like, Nakai spent his student days studying psychology, but went on to study abroad in Australia and Denmark. It is said that he had a chance encounter with the world of manufacturing.

"I returned to Japan because I felt that I didn't know much about Japanese history and crafts in order to take on challenges overseas. We believed that it was necessary to have a solid understanding of history.For this reason, at our research institute in Tajimi, we are learning about the history of ceramics, which has been developed over a long period of time, while learning about ceramics such as clay, glaze, and fire. I learned a lot of techniques.”

It was his first time seriously experiencing ceramics, and he was shocked by how interesting and profound it was.

“When I opened the kiln where I made my own pottery for the first time, I was very moved.What I found was not the shape I had expected, but warped and cracked. In the kiln, it transforms into something completely different.The pottery is fired in a powerful fire that reaches temperatures of nearly 1,300 degrees, making it extremely fragile and ephemeral. You can't control everything yourself; once you put clay into the fire, you have no choice but to leave it to the material to determine what happens next. Such unimaginable coincidences and margins, as well as complex and ambiguous parts that cannot be manipulated by humans, strongly fascinated me, as I am interested in thinking about the nature of human psychology and society. Since then, I have continued to produce pottery, obsessively pursuing the beauty of pottery where strength and delicacy coexist. ”

Nakai creates bold works by reconstructing the common sense of traditional pottery and incorporating methods and details that are not considered correct. As I listened to her talk, I could sense her strong commitment to visual beauty.

``When I was a child, I remember playing with collecting white birch bark from my parents' garden and cutting it into small pieces in the same shape.Looking back on it now, I was fascinated by the bark of birch trees. I love the shape and texture of things, and am obsessed with looking at how cool they are and working with them. I think this "detail/texture nerd" personality is common to the way I create my work today.First, I find something that I find beautiful or cool, and use that as my starting point. I like the process of developing the production. For example, when I tried to make a usable vessel by applying glaze to it, I accidentally ended up with a bulge. However, if that detail is cool, I will use only the atmosphere of that point to develop the entire work. In this way, I find the coolness hidden in the details and continue to search for new forms of expression. Maybe it's part of my personality that I can find something cool that would normally be considered a failure. ”

Nakai continues as follows regarding his thoughts on production.

“Ever since I first started making pottery, I think I have always pursued only its beauty.The concept and message of the work are also important, but I personally try not to think about things that are too difficult. At any rate, we can appreciate the beauty of the ceramics right in front of our eyes. It feels like I've been passionately pursuing this project for a long time, without having to worry about it.Although I'm basing it on existing ceramic techniques, I'm changing the balance of glaze and clay, and I'm stretching the material to a thickness that's impossible to make before firing. We arrived at the current form by experimenting with various approaches.''

“When I was only making pottery works, I always felt that I was not able to fully express what I wanted to convey through my works.I broke away from the concept of a pottery and found a way to express myself through simple ceramics. Ever since I started seeing this, I feel like I've finally been able to give form to my words and thoughts little by little.Up until now, I have been completely engrossed in the joy of pottery and have been passionately creating pieces, but I have acquired basic ceramic techniques, experience with materials and methods, and language expression skills, and am now improving my own work. Now that I have solidified the outline of my style, I am starting to think about the human psychology and spirit once again, and want to express them through my work. ”

As the interview drew to a close, Nakai looked back on her past self.

"When I first started my career as an artist, I was very careful about how people would judge me and what my image would be.I felt that depending on the place I exhibited and the people I interacted with, a certain color attached to me. , I feel like it determines how far I can go. Also, I'm working hard to establish my own way of being, rebelling against the common sense and theory of traditional pottery. There have been times.Now that I have continued to be active and the number of people who appreciate my style has increased little by little, I am honestly happy to be involved not only with the world of ceramics but also with people in industries and communities different from mine. I'm starting to feel that I've become. ”

Finally, when I asked Mr. Imanakai about his goals, he gave a surprising answer.

"I still feel the joy of pottery every day, but at the same time, I don't just stick to pottery. Even at times, I often think, ``If it were me, I wouldn't interpret it this way and express it this way.'' In essence, it wasn't ceramic. I feel like I want to create something.What is the overall shape of what I really like and want to work on?I try to understand the core part of myself every day. ”

Nakai concluded the interview by talking about his future plans as a writer.

“I would like to make a thorough preparation for a solo exhibition overseas before it becomes a reality.I want more people to see my work. I'd like to know more about their impressions and reactions to it.Will they receive the same kind of praise as they are receiving now in Japan, or will there be unexpected reactions? Even if it's negative, the differences are an interesting learning experience, and I really enjoy going to new environments and recognizing the differences between people. Through my work, I would like to learn more about what kind of shape I have.”