NOBUE IBARAKI • CERAMIC ARTIST
SANO • JAPAN 

Nobue Ibaraki creates her work in a tiny home-workshop located in Sano, in the Tochigi prefecture north of Tokyo.

After initially studying fashion, but later embracing ceramics, Ibaraki is influenced by her love of ancient Persian art, and her work blends concepts both Old and New, Western and Asian.

Her vessels are all handbuilt, making each one "perfectly imperfect", and no two are alike. She also draws from a palette of only four colours - white, dark blue, pale blue or pale green, often highlighted with washes of brown.

The metallic aspect of her finishes is the result of the alchemy that occurs during firing - achieved through the chemical reaction of natural glazes containing cobalt or copper and iron rich clay sourced from Tajimi.

Her work is much sought after, in Japan and globally, and she was recently commissioned by Noma, Kyoto, to make dinnerware for this new iteration of the restaurant.

Ibaraki's work is very exclusive and we have been waiting patiently for over a year for our current offering. We are now thrilled to be able to present a wide selection of her work - available online and in-store at DEA EAST.