Miyanaga Rikichi, Miyanaga Tozan III, the Blue Corridor, 1992

This wall plaque, titled The Blue Corridor, created in 1992 by Miyanaga Tozan III (Rikichi), demonstrates the artist's subtle and poetic approach to porcelain. The surface is dominated by an intense blue glaze, oscillating between azure tones and underglaze cobalt, reinforcing the slightly raised and slightly incised line and circle motifs.

This deep blue is not uniform; it blends into powdery, lighter and darker shades, evoking plays of light and shadow that one might glimpse in a corridor bathed in subdued light. The abstract details of the surface give the work a painterly quality.

Discreetly signed in the lower right corner, the plaque, with its dimensions of 45 x 27.5 cm, is set in an elegant black lacquered wooden frame with rounded upper edges. This custom-made frame reinforces the refined and introspective character of the whole, measuring 65 x 47.5 x 5 cm overall

Born in 1935 in Kyoto, Miyanaga Rikichi is the son of Miyanaga Tozan II. A graduate of the Kyoto University of the Arts' Faculty of Sculpture, he briefly continued his studies before leaving for the United States in 1960. There, he explored new artistic horizons at the Art Students League of New York and immersed himself in contemporary trends. Returning to Japan in the 1960s, he moved away from classical ceramic traditions and adopted a more sculptural and experimental approach. He joined the renowned Sōdeisha group, known for its avant-garde innovations in ceramics.

Over the following decades, Miyanaga Tozan III developed a unique artistic language, blending traditional techniques and contemporary expressions.

A master of sometsuke and seihakuji glazes, he succeeded in breathing modern vitality into ancestral practices.

His works are widely exhibited in Japan and abroad, including at the National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto and Tokyo, as well as the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.

In 1999, he officially succeeded to the name Tozan Miyanaga III, thus consolidating a prestigious line of potters. This title reflects not only his technical mastery, but also his remarkable contribution to the renewal of Japanese ceramics.