Photo= A piece expressing the deep blue of the sea with a cobalt glaze (Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park, Shigaraki Town, Koka City, Shiga Prefecture)

On June 20, a special exhibition titled "Junin Toiro - The Colorful World of Ceramics," introducing various color selections and expressive techniques of coloring in ceramic works, sponsored by the Kyoto Shimbun Co., Ltd. and other organizations, began at the ceramic museum of the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park in Shigaraki Town, Koka City, Shiga Prefecture.

A total of 96 works produced by 93 artists from Japan and abroad between the 1960s and the 2010s are on exhibit, including a piece expressing the deep blue of the sea with cobalt glaze and another with the motif of a horse standing still in a soft reddish-brown. Also displayed are a Japanese artist's work with an image of a cloud with a dull, golden color and an American artist's work containing a twist of criticism regarding the contemporary material civilization in bright gold are also displayed. The exhibit shows differences in color sense and the messages incorporated into their works between the East and the West.

A curator said, "Some works express an imagined landscape with using traditional techniques of Shigaraki ware, in which the shade of scarlet changes with the degree of firing. They show new possibilities in Shigaraki ware."  The exhibition continues until September 24. It is closed on Mondays except for July 17 and September 18 when it is closed on the following Tuesday instead. There is an admission fee.