An internationally recognized innovator in the American Craft Movement, Toshiko Takaezu emerged into the male-dominated field of contemporary ceramics in the 1950s. Takaezu merges the sculptural possibilities of functional form with gestural brush-work. Moving with facility and ease between scale, her work ranges from small plates and tea bowls to large “closed” vessels that contain only the slightest reference to the functional forms they magnify. Takaezu individually glazes each piece, drawing on diverse cultural practices and approaches, from Japanese calligraphy to the spontaneity of Abstract Expressionism.

Takaezu personally selected a group of 17 works as a gift to the Museum in celebration of its move to Portland’s Pearl District in 2007. Combined with recent gifts from her long-time friend and colleague Ken Shores, the museum proudly owns one of the largest collections of works by Takaezu in the Pacific Northwest, made public for the first time through this exhibition.

Donors to the collection: The Larsen Estate, Mary Anne Normandin, Ken Shores, Toshiko Takaezu

Lenders to the exhibition: Brian and Tina (Takaezu) Ejima, Butters Gallery, Ronna and Eric Hoffman, Ken Shores, Takaezu Family

Exhibition made possible by:
Anonymous, Dolly Lemelson, J. Douglas Macy, Linda and Ken Mantel, Dick and Deanne Rubinstein, Joan and John Shipley, Carol Smith-Larson, Judy Teufel