Читать книгу The Ceramic Art of Japan - Hugo Münsterberg - Страница 10

Preface

The Study of Japanese ceramics, to which Captain Brinkley and Professor Morse had made such a significant contribution by the turn of the century, has unfortunately been neglected in the West during the last fifty years, and it is only recently that the unique beauty of these wares has been rediscovered. Fortunately, Japanese scholars have investigated the field very thoroughly during the intervening years. One result of this research is that these older books, although pioneering ventures in their own day, are now completely outdated. In the present book an attempt has been made to bring our knowledge up to date and to include such subjects as prehistoric wares, folk pottery, and the wares of present-day potters.

No book of this type would have been possible without the advice and help of my Japanese colleagues, who throughout my study gave me generously of their counsel and to whose writings I constantly referred. Among these I would like to mention Mr. Sakutaro Tanaka of the Tokyo National Museum, Mr. Fujio Koyama of the Cultural Treasures Property Commission, Mr. Tadanari Mitsuoka of the Yamato Bunkakan in Osaka, Mr. Ryoichi Fujioka of the Kyoto Museum, Mr. Shinzo Sato of the Osaka Museum, Mr. Giichiro Kato of the Itsuo Bijutsukan, and Mr. Takeshi Nagatake of the Saga Cultural Affairs Office. My thanks are also due to the numerous museums and private collectors for their generous permission to reproduce works in their collections and to the photographers who supplied the plates. Finally I wish to express my thanks to my former students Mr. Masakata Kanazawa and Miss Emiko Ishikawa for their help in translating Japanese material and acting as my guides in visits to potters and kiln sites, and to Dr. and Mrs. David Kornhauser, Mrs. Robert Lang, and my wife for helping me to get the manuscript ready for publication.

Hugo Munsterberg

NEW PALTZ, NEW YORK