堅田貴治
Takaharu Katada

　高知市春野町に工房を構える堅田さん。見せるためではなく日常で長く使える上質な陶器を制作しています。そのシンプルな色と形は和にも洋にもなじむ佇まいで、日常のいろいろな場面に溶け込む器です。
　口当たりの良いカップは、高さや口径が型にはめて焼いたように誤差が少なく、プロダクトのように感じますが、これは堅田さんのろくろ技術によるもの。「作家というより職人の方が好き」という技術へのこだわりから生まれています。
　「形にしても色にしても、無理に自分らしさを出す必要はないと思っています。素材を理解し、素直に向き合い、きちんと仕事をしたい」。土と釉薬と真摯に向き合い、一つ一つの作品が生まれています。

Mr. Katada has a studio in Haruno-cho, Kochi City. He produces high quality ceramics that are not for show but for daily use for a long time. The simple colors and shapes of his pottery blend well with both Japanese and Western styles, making it suitable for a variety of everyday situations.
　The cups with a pleasant feel in the mouth have a small error in height and diameter as if they were fired in a mold, which gives them the appearance of a product, but this is due to Mr. Katada's rororo technique. This is due to Mr. Katada's technique of roroku, a technique he says he prefers to use as a craftsman rather than as an artist.
　I don't think it's necessary to force my own style in terms of shape and color," he says. I want to understand the materials, face them honestly, and work properly. Each piece is born from a sincere relationship with the clay and glaze.

写真＝河上展儀
Photo by Kawakami Nobuyoshi