Nobuhito Nakaoka (仲岡信人), Japanese (b. 1977)

A Saiyu Incense Burner (彩色灰釉香炉)

Heisei Era (1989-2019) or Reiwa Era (2019-present)

About the work

This incense burner by Nobuhito Nakaoka is an elegant and sculptural example of his distinctive use of colored ash glaze (saiyu). The form is low and horizontally expanded, with softly faceted sides that create a sense of movement and balance. A small, raised square platform at the top supports a fitted lid with a vertical finial, lending the piece both architectural presence and functional refinement.

The surface is covered in a luminous pale celadon-toned glaze, subtly pooling and thinning across the contours. Flowing cobalt-blue accents trace along the edges and natural ridges, emphasizing the form and enhancing its visual rhythm. The glaze reveals delicate variations in tone, while the exposed foot shows the warm, reddish clay body beneath.

The piece is accompanied by its original signed wooden storage box (tomobako), cloth, and documentation.

Dimensions

10cm(h) x 17.5cm(w) x 11cm(d)

Footnote

Nobuhito Nakaoka (仲岡信人), born in Osaka in 1977, is a Japanese ceramic artist working in the Tamba ware tradition. After apprenticing under Tamba potter Nishibata Tadashi, he completed ceramic studies at the Kyoto Municipal Institute of Industrial Technology in 2001. From 2003 to 2005, he served as a Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer, working as a ceramics specialist in Saint Vincent. He established his independent kiln in Tachikui, Sasayama, in 2006. Nakaoka has been widely exhibited and awarded, including repeated selections for the Tabe Art Museum Award Exhibition for Tea Ceramics, the Kobe Biennale Contemporary Ceramics Competition, and the Hagi Grand Prize Exhibition. His work is noted for carbonized firing effects and a strong balance of sculptural presence and functional form.