International Origins of Japanese Ceramics

Korean Potters in Japan after the East Asian War of 1592–1598

The third and final talk in this exclusive lecture series, delivered by Northumbria University Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Dr. Floris van Swet.

Though little known in the West, the effects of the East Asian War of 1592-1598 can still be traced in East Asia today. At the time it redrew the political map of East Asia and had long term consequences on trade, economies, and national identity. One such effect was the importation of Korean potters and pottery knowledge to Japan; something that would shape the future of ceramics in Japan. From beautiful white plates from Arita, to rustic and delicately-glazed tea vessels from Hagi, none would have existed without migrant knowledge and skill.
The beautiful examples in The Bowes Museum are a starting point for this talk which will outline the importance of Korean potters to the development of ceramics in Japan and explain how the highly valued Japanese ceramics we know today are in fact an amalgam of the conflict in Korea, Korean knowledge, Japanese domestic circumstances, and Western taste

Floris van Swet is a historian of early modern Japan and East Asia. A PhD graduate from the University of Harvard in 2019, he joined Northumbria University as Postdoctoral Research Fellow and member of the “Migration-Adaptation-Innovation, 1500-1800” project team.