4. Denshichi Kanzan

KANZAN Denshichi Kanzan (1821-1890)

幹山 伝七  

a.k.a. Kato Kanzan  幹山 加藤 )

 

Denshichi Kanzan was born in 1821 in the ceramic-producing area of Seto and was trained in the Koto ware kiln in Hikone. He moved to Kyoto after the closedown of the kiln in 1862 and  opened his own workshop under the name Denshichi Terao. The name was changed in 1863 to Shontei, then to Kanzan Kato, in 1872, to Kanzan Denshichi and in 1885 in Kanzan Toki Kaisha (Kanzan Ceramics Company).  At Gottfried Wagener’s suggestion in 1970 he became the first potter in Japan to employ Western pigments and glazes. Kanzan’s works include porcelain tableware, both Western and Japanese in style, often decorated with brightly coloured polychrome and gold.

The bottom of a bowl with Denshichi Kanzan's signature.

According to Augustus Franks -Japanese Pottery 1880 - Kanzan Denshichi ‘invented a manner of representing in porcelain, iron inlaid with gold’. In 1873  the Imperial Household Ministry purchased Kanzan’s works, including some tableware for use in the Enriokan and other items in the style of the underglaze blue decorated Edo-period imperial porcelains known as kinri goyōtōki. Participating widely in national and international exhibitions, and receiving a large number of awards, Kanzan became one of the best known and most successful manufacturers of ceramics in Kyoto. At its peak, Kanzan’s workshop had up to 100 craftsmen, but mismanagement led to the dissolution of the workshop and he sold the Kanzan Toki Kaisha in 1889. He died a year later in 1890. The technique of colorful iro-é brushwork and intricate overglaze patterns that had preserved the "Kanzan porcelain" appellation for over a century however still exists. Kanzan Shigeta, born in Kyoto 1973 is the eighth generation of Kanzan ceramic artists and had his formal apprenticeship under his father, Kanzan Denshichi VII.

Some examples of the beautiful work of Kanzan Denshichi. Pieces by Kanzan may be found in the collections of the Sannomaru Shōzōkan (Museum of the Imperial Collections) and Imperial Banqueting Department of Japan’s Imperial Household Agency, Tokyo National Museum and Kyoto Prefectural Library and Archives.