Please join us Friday, 28 June at 10:30AM EST for a conversation on the work of late Pucker Gallery artist Tatsuzo Shimaoka (1919-2007) who was designated a Living National Treasure of Japan in 1996.
We are most grateful to Shimaoka-sensei for his guidance and help as we found our way into the world of Japanese ceramics. He introduced us to the art of Ken Matsuzaki who in turn introduced us to the art of Hagiwara Yoshinori. In addition, he devoted three full days to helping us find a Gallery to exhibit the art of Brother Thomas in Tokyo in 2000. When this exhibition came to fruition, he attended the opening at the Green Gallery and purchased Brother Thomas's work becoming the initial sale of that exhibition!
Together with:
Randy Johnston, Renowned ceramicist and former apprentice of Shimaoka-sensei
Andrew Maske, Gordon L. Grosscup Museum Director and Professor of Museum Studies at Wayne State University
Mara Williams, Brattleboro Museum Curator Emerita
Caroline Staller, Gallery Associate
Bernard Pucker, Gallery Director
We will share personal experiences as well as discuss specific works from our Fine Choices featuring Tatsuzo Shimaoka which will be on view at Pucker Gallery from 29 June through 1 September 2024.
BIOS:
Tatsuzo Shimaoka was born in Tokyo in 1919 and studied pottery at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Five years after graduating in 1941 with a degree in industrial ceramics, Shimaoka began a three year apprenticeship in Shoji Hamada’s workshop. From 1950 to 1953, Shimaoka worked at Tochigi Prefecture Ceramic Research Center where he developed many of his signature rope inlay decoration techniques. He then built his own kiln and established a workshop in Mashiko. From the 1960s to the ’80s, Shimaoka traveled around the world and was invited to exhibit in North America, Asia and Europe. He was awarded many prizes in Japan for distinguished work and contribution to traditional Japanese folk art and in 1996, Shimaoka was designated Living National Treasure of Japan. Shimaoka died in Mashiko in December 2007.
Randy Johnston is a recognized artist who has exhibited internationally for 51 years. He is the recipient of numerous awards including the Bush Foundation Artist Fellowship, two Visual Artist Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, a Distinguished Teaching Award in American Arts from the James Renwick Society of the Smithsonian, and the Walter Gropius Award for Artists. A member of the International Academy of Ceramics, Johnston received his MFA from Southern Illinois University and a BFA in Studio Arts from the University of Minnesota, where he studied with Warren MacKenzie. He also studied in Japan at the pottery studio of Tatsuzo Shimaoka (who was himself a student of Shoji Hamada). Johnston has presented hundreds of lectures and guest artist presentations worldwide, and his work is represented in numerous international museums and private collections.
Andrew Maske received his doctorate in Japanese Art History from Oxford University. He teaches courses concentrating on the art of East Asia (China, Korea, and Japan). As a curator of Japanese art between 1999 and 2005, he developed the exhibition Geisha: Beyond the Painted Smile and served as editor and primary author of the critically acclaimed volume by the same name. This exhibition explored Japanese geisha both as the subject of artwork and as performing artists themselves from the eighteenth century to the present day. Dr. Maske also played a major role in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s 2003 catalogue, Turning Point: Oribe and the Arts of Sixteenth Century Japan, which examined the revolution in Japanese aesthetics that began in the late sixteenth century. He has published articles and reviews in Archaeometry, Journal of Japanese Studies, Orientations, and Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan.
During the seven years he lived in Japan, Dr. Maske studied numerous aspects of Japanese art and culture, practicing chanoyu (tea ceremony), Japanese dance, and music by way of the shamisen. In 2006-2007 he was awarded a Fulbright research fellowship to study the development of contemporary ceramics in China.
Mara Williams assumed Emerita status in 2021, after curating exhibits at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center for thirty-three years. Her area of expertise is modern and contemporary art. Recent solo exhibitions include: Gathering Light: The Art of Stephen Hannock, Wolf Kahn—Landscape of Light; Secrets by Gloria Garfinkel; Andy Warhol—Selections from the Jon Gould Collection. Group shows have included the work of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Janet Fish, Mary Frank, Keith Haring, David Hockney, Maya Lin, James McGarrell, David Nash, Robert Rauschenberg, Ursula von Ridingsvard, Michael Singer, Tseng Kwong Chi, and Barbara Zucker, as well as a host of regional and emerging talent.
Caroline Staller is a ceramic sculptor and educator. She attended New Mexico State University in 2011 and graduated in 2015 with degrees in Fine Art and Biology with a Biochemistry minor. She completed her MFA in Ceramics from the University of Missouri in 2021 where she studied under artists Bede Clarke and Joseph Pintz. Her small-scale tableaus and carvings of horses are peaceful and reflective with a focus on the beauty she sees in ‘simple’ objects both made by hand and found, which is reminiscent of her childhood exploring the desert on horse-back and finding unique objects aged by the harsh elements. She has taught ceramic sculpture at Harvard Ceramics where she encouraged students to focus on a close conversation with clay through color, texture, and form. Caroline currently works at her home studio as well as Pucker Gallery.
Bernie Pucker is the director of Pucker Gallery, which he founded with his wife, Sue, on Boston's historic Newbury Street in 1967. Pucker Gallery represents over fifty artists from around the world, presenting approximately ten exhibitions annually, often paired with artist talks, virtual “WebinArts,” and Gallery receptions. Bernie is currently a Board Member at the Japan Society, Boston, and the Jewish Publication Society. He also serves on the Leadership Council for Facing History and Ourselves as well as the Artistic Advisory Board for the Terezin Music Foundation. Previously, he has served as President of Solomon Schechter Day School, President of the Newbury Street League, and Board Member for the Friends of Copley Square and The Unity Project, among others. Bernie received his MA in Modern Jewish History from Brandeis University and his BA in History and English Literature from Columbia College.