Setsuko Nagasawa (Born in 1941)

In the mid-1990s, Setsuko Nagasawa took a new direction in her work, creating figures inspired by geometry. An interplay between the mastery of the material at the time of conception and the surprises that the firing brings. This is perhaps what the artist calls “geometric illusion”.
The geometric lines also allow the texture of the material to be highlighted, the essential shapes chosen are then matte and raw, without any sought-after effects.

The black areas are obtained using the smouldering technique, which consists of immersing the part of the ceramic that is to be blackened in wood chips during a new firing. This traditional technique was used by Japanese villagers to waterproof their roof tiles.

Reference: Viatte, Thibaudat, L’Epine, 8 Artistes & la Terre, Editions Argiles, 2009, p.165.

Learn more about Setsuko Nagazawa’s work