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Biography

Hiroshi Toyofuku is a contemporary ceramic artist based in Bizen, Okayama, Japan. His practice centers on the material qualities of clay and their relationship to form, drawing on the thousand-year ceramic tradition of Bizen while pursuing a distinctly contemporary approach.

Although not originally from Bizen, Toyofuku was drawn to the region by its ancient wood-fired kilns and its deeply rooted cultural traditions. While studying Japanese folk performing arts at university, he developed an interest in the relationship between objects, movement, and ritual—an interest that continues to inform his work today.

Working primarily with locally sourced Bizen clay, Toyofuku is interested in revealing the material's intrinsic character. The marbled layers, mineral variations, and natural stratification within the clay are not treated as incidental surface effects but as evidence of geological processes and deep time. Rather than imposing imagery or decoration, he seeks forms that allow these qualities to emerge with clarity and presence.

Since around 2012, coil-building has become his primary method of construction. Built through the gradual accumulation of clay coils, his works combine structural simplicity with visual complexity. Their layered forms echo both natural growth and human construction, creating a dialogue between material, process, and form.

Wood firing plays an essential role in his practice. Through extended firings in traditional kilns, the interaction of flame, ash, and clay produces subtle transformations that cannot be fully predicted or controlled. For Toyofuku, firing is not merely a finishing process but a continuation of the material's transformation.

Toyofuku received the Encouragement Prize at the Tabe Museum of Art Grand Prize Exhibition of Tea Ceremony Art in 2001. He established his own kiln and studio in 2007 and has exhibited his work throughout Japan. Through ongoing investigations into clay, form, and fire, he continues to expand the possibilities of contemporary ceramic expression.

CV

Born in 1973 in Tokyo, Japan. Lives and works in Wake-cho, Okayama, Japan.

EDUCATION

1996 BA, Department of Humanities, College of Liberal Arts, International Christian University, Tokyo, Japan

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2024 Clay rises up, Art Gallery Takashimaya, Tokyo

2022 Form that rises from the cray, Art Gallery Takashimaya, Yokohama

2019 Kneaded surface that represents nature, Art Gallery Tenmaya, Okayama

2016 Solo Exhibition, Art Gallery Takashimaya, Yokohama

2014 Solo Exhibition, Art Gallery Tenmaya, Okayama

2010 Solo Exhibition, Art Gallery Tobu, Tokyo (Held annually thereafter)

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2024 Musuhi, Maud & Mabel, London

Bends & Folds - A Group Exhibition -, Studio Tashtego, New York

2023 Art Paris, Grand Palais Éphémère, Paris

2022 Art Antwerp, Antwerp Expo, Antwerp

Ceramic Flowers in Spring, Art Gallery Takashimaya, Osaka

The Ceramic Art Sciety of Japan Exhibition, Shosha Art & CraftMuseum, Himeji

2021 Six people exhibition of BIZEN - the moment of takeoff -, Kakiden Gallery, Tokyo

2020 Next The Bizen: Artists Creating the Future of the Bizen, Art Gallery Okayama Tenmaya, Okayama

2019 The long-awaited Bizen Exhibition, Ippodo Gallery, Tokyo

Five Kilns for Spring, Art Gallery Takashimaya, Tokyo

2016 Two-person exhibition, Art for thought, Tokyo

2010 Bitoukai, Art Gallery Tobu, Tokyo

PRIZES

2022 Excellence Award, Tobiten Ceramics Exhibition, The Ceramic Art Sciety of Japan

Mayor of Okayama Award, Chugoku Japan Traditional Art Crafts Exhibition

Okayama Prefecture Superintendent of Education Award, Okayama prefectural Art Exhibition

2021 Honorable Mention, International Ceramics Festival Mino

2019 Incentive Award, Tobiten Ceramics Exhibition, The Ceramic Art Sciety of Japan

2017 Selection, Japan Traditional Art Crafts Exhibition

2016 The Sanyo Newspaper Company prize, Chugoku Exhibition of the Japan Traditional Art Crafts

Selection, Modern Tea Ceremony Ceramics Exhibition

Selection, The Hagi Taishou of Contemporary Ceramic

Selection, Mino Chawan Exhibition

2015 Selection, Kikuchi Biennare in Musee Tomo

Selection, Cyozasyo Tokoname Biennare

2009 Excellence Award, Tanabe Museum of Art "Tea Ceremony Formative Arts Exhibition"

2002 Okayama prefectural governor prize, Okayama prefectural Art Exhibition

2001 Incentive Award, Tanabe Museum of Art "Tea Ceremony Formative Arts Exhibition"

2000 Selection, Chugoku Exhibition of the Japan Traditional Art Crafts