6. Kinkozan

KINKOZAN

錦光山

Kinkōzan Sōbei VI (1824–1884)

Kinkōzan Sōbei VII (1867–1927)

Real name Koboyashi Sobei    

Kinkozan is a ‘given’ name for a family of Kyoto Awataguchi potters with the name Koboyashi. The family was very active in pottery manufactury in Kyoto from 1645 up until 1927. In the 18th century the third Koboyashi was granted by the Shogun to bear the name Kinkozan.  Note that Kinkōzan Sōbei  VI (1824–1884), was the sixth generation of a family with the name Kobyashi but that it was only after two generations that the Kinkozan name was granted to this family. That makes that Kinkozan VI also is known as Kinkozan IV, and his son,  the last Kinkozan as Kinkozan V.

For his quality work Kinkozan factory was working with the best artist in this time. Among them were Gassan, Fuzan, Ituzan, Kozan, Seizan, Sozan and many others. Suwa Sozan, a potter who worked as artistic director for Kinkozan from 1900-1907 was maybe the best of them, he created true masterpeaces for Kinkozan, but did the same for Yasuda and for his own studio what he started in 1907. In the same time there was another Sozan, a painter about whom is nothing known but who was an exceptional artist, able to create wonderful depictions, no less as true works of art, on sometimes very tiny objects.

Note that Kinkozan VII was born in 1868, and took over the business in 1884. So all his work must be dated from 1884 or later and all the Kinkozan signed pieces before must be from Kinkozan VI or ancestors.

It is likely that the Kinkozan factory was closed in 1932, a few years after the death of Kinkozan VII in 1927.  Gisela Jahn, mentions with regard to Kinkozan VII  also a Kinkozan VIII, and the closure of the factory in 1930 ("the factory finally closed soon after the death of KInkozan VIII in 1930" p. 99, Gisela Jahn: Meiji Ceramics), and also Irene Stitt mentions  that "The family continued until the eight generation" (p. 58, Japanese ceramics of the last 100 years). According to the Kinkozan family, what is likely the beste source,  the last Kinkozan was Kinkozan VIII who for a short time succeeded the management of the Kinkozan factory, until it was closed in 1932. He was not very successful, and it is very rare to see a  piece with the mark what was registered by Kinkozan VIII in september 1929 at the Department of Commercial Trading Registration as Number 36166. It's therefore likely that all Kinkozan ware what is on the market can be dated from before 1927.