This exhibition explores the groundbreaking work of Jun Kaneko (born 1942), one of America ’s leading ceramic sculptors.  The Omaha, Nebraska-based artist is internationally known for his monumental forms that combine the ceramic traditions of his native Japan with dazzling glaze patterns influenced by American abstract painting. 

Kaneko’s smooth, elegant sculptures take the form of oval plates, colossal heads as well as tall rounded shapes called “dangos” (Japanese for dumpling).  Some weigh more than 1,000 pounds and stand seven feet tall. He is the first artist to attempt to create such large-scale ceramic forms, many of which do not survive the four-month construction process and 35-day firing period. Peter Voulkos, Kaneko’s mentor and an influential artist in his own right, described Kaneko’s work: “Kaneko’s ceramic works are an amazing synthesis of painting and sculpture. His works are enigmatic and elusive, simultaneously restrained and powerful, Eastern and Western, static and alive, intellectual and playful, technical and innovative.”

Kaneko’s work is in the collections of numerous institutions, including the American Crafts Museum, NY; Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Oakland Museum of Art, CA; Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, NE; and Smithsonian National Museum of American Art, Renwick Gallery, Washington, DC.

The exhibition is organized by Smith Kramer, Inc. Kansas City, MO.