Sueharu Fukami

Sueharu Fukami has developed an international reputation for his minimalist, abstract porcelain sculptures and breathtaking technical proficiency as a craftsperson. Working primarily with elongated vertical or horizontal curvilinear forms, Fukami’s sculptures evoke the majestic expanse of a far-off horizon and possess graceful fluidity, elegant curves, and sharply defined edges. To create his sculptures, Fukami injects liquid porcelain clay into plaster molds under high pressure. He then finishes and polishes his pieces with a variety of hard-edged tools before glazing them with an air-compressor and firing them in an oxygen-deprived electric kiln. The artist often produces his sculptures in editions of eight casts, but no two of his pieces are identical. He uses a traditional pale blue seihakuji glaze, with subtle variations in thickness and tone. Fukami strives to leave the surface of his works as smooth and unmarked as possible, desiring to leave the trace of his heart, rather than his hands, on his finished pieces.