Junsuke Inatomi: Stillness

EVENT DESCRIPTION

WKM Gallery is pleased to present Stillness, a solo exhibition by Osaka-based ceramicist Junsuke Inatomi. Stillness brings together a new series of ceramic works that continue Inatomi’s introspective exploration of beauty. Characterized by minimal, cylindrical shapes and soft white surfaces, Inatomi’s works utilize restraint as a form of expressiveness, relaying a profound Japanese understanding of the aesthetic experience; one that offers space for silence, pause, and reflection.

Using clay from Shigaraki, an area in southern Japan renowned for its history as a center for ceramics, Inatomi creates his works through a meticulous and time-consuming process in which he coats the ceramics in thin layers of white clay slip and fires them multiple times. This process allows for a pristine matte white finish that gives the works a soft glow that seems both angelic and ghostly in turns, imbuing them with an unearthly atmosphere. Yet, upon closer inspection, one will find that the vessels hold the warmth of the artist’s touch in the form of fingerprints and slight asymmetries. The smooth white surface humbly reveals traces of the human hand, allowing light to illuminate them at will.

ABOUT THE ARTIST / ORGANISER

Born 1981 in Osaka, Japan.Lives and works in Osaka, Japan. Junsuke Inatomi is a Japanese ceramicist whose practice centers on an ongoing investigation into the nature of beauty through material and form. Inatomi’s minimal shapes and unique method of applying white clay slip form the basis of his works, recognizable by their matte white surface. Carrying themes of traditional Japanese aesthetic principles such as yūgen and ma, Inatomi’s work is made with an acceptance of natural light and the subtle traces of the human hand revealed by its constant shifting, embracing such elements of imperfection and transience. For Inatomi, the act of making is inseparable from the process of life and death. He has described his practice as an attempt at discovering true beauty, while simultaneously acknowledging that it may never be fully grasped. Through this paradox, his works transform from utilitarian objects into vessels of deep introspection.