The paths we took before touching clay
shape the pottery we make today.
The makers
作り手
Koji Umehara
梅原 幸治
You never know the color of a glaze
until you open the kiln
Born in Otsu, Shiga.
Drawn to making things, he worked as a programmer and engineer in the IT industry, then qualified as an administrative scrivener.
His wish to create something tangible grew stronger, and he took on the restaurant business with a yakitori restaurant.
Running the restaurant, he saw how much the dish shapes the impression of the food — and turned to pottery.
He trained under a Kyoto pottery family with more than ten generations of history, then completed the ceramics course of the Traditional Industry Successor Training Program at the Kyoto Municipal Institute of Industrial Technology and Culture.
Today he makes everyday pottery as well as tableware for restaurants.
In the Otsu studio, he continues to make, one by one, pieces that stay close to the time of those who use them.
Miki Umehara
梅原 美希
Stroke by stroke,
layering line upon line
Born in Otsu, Shiga.
After studying art and culture at university,
she was drawn to more precise handwork and became a dental technician.
Years of work demanding micron-level precision deepened her wish to make things as free expression — and led her to pottery.
She trained under a Kyoto pottery family with more than ten generations of history, learning the foundations of ceramics.
The hand skills and perspective gained in a different field now shape her ideas for pottery.
Today she works mainly in sometsuke and horie.
She values pottery that makes the most of the clay’s texture, gains character with use, and blends into daily life.
