Japanese Sometsuke Peach-Form Mukozuke
A beautifully expressive porcelain dish by Japanese ceramic artist Renji Nakagaki (b. 1954) of Shūhō Kiln in Toki, Gifu Prefecture.
Formed in the shape of a peach, the dish is hand-painted in traditional sometsuke underglaze blue with a flowering branch motif. The cobalt decoration shifts from deep, inky outlines to softer washes of blue, giving the painting the spontaneous character of the artist’s brushwork.
The sculptural quality continues underneath, where the peach form and leaf are modeled in relief and the vessel rests on three small feet. A blue kiln mark appears on the base.
Nakagaki is a third-generation ceramic artist working within the historic Mino pottery tradition. His work combines traditional Japanese ceramic techniques with playful, highly usable forms designed for the contemporary table.
Traditionally called a mukozuke, this type of individual serving vessel can be used for sashimi, small dishes and seasonal accompaniments. Its sculptural peach form also makes it a beautiful object for display.
Dimensions: W 6" x L 5.25" x H 2"
Food-safe.
Handcrafted in Toki, Gifu Prefecture, Japan.
About Renji Nakagaki: Renji Nakagaki (中垣連次, b. 1954) is a Japanese ceramic artist based in Toki, Gifu Prefecture, at the heart of Japan’s historic Mino pottery region. Born into a family of potters, Nakagaki studied under his father, ceramicist Katsumi Nakagaki, and in 1981 succeeded to the family title of third-generation Shūhō, continuing the work of Shūhō Kiln.
Nakagaki works across several traditions associated with Mino ceramics, including Shino and Oribe, as well as finely painted sometsuke porcelain. His practice is rooted in traditional Japanese pottery while remaining closely connected to the everyday table. Rather than treating ceramics solely as objects for display, he creates vessels intended to be handled, used, and enjoyed with food.
A distinctive quality of Nakagaki’s work is its balance between refinement and spontaneity. His painted porcelain often features freely brushed botanical, animal, and seasonal motifs in cobalt blue. Variations in the density of the pigment, irregular outlines, and visible traces of the brush give each vessel an individual character. His forms can be equally expressive, ranging from traditional bowls and plates to sculptural dishes shaped after natural forms such as fruit and leaves.
Underlying this playfulness is the long ceramic history of Toki and the Mino region, where pottery has been produced for centuries. Nakagaki’s work carries that tradition forward without simply reproducing historical forms. His vessels feel distinctly Japanese and connected to their place of origin, yet their simplicity, warmth, and functionality make them particularly suited to a contemporary table.
Today, Nakagaki continues to work from Shūhō Kiln in Toki, producing ceramics that celebrate the relationship between craftsmanship, food, seasonality, and daily life.
