Goldmark Gallery Archives -

Ken Matsuzaki: “Elemental” feature film about Japanese potter

Ken Matsuzaki is a Japanese potter working from Mashiko who enjoys an international reputation. He was apprenticed to the late Tatsuzo Shimaoka (National Living Treasure) who in turn had been apprenticed to Shoji Hamada. Matsuzki's work can be seen in some of the world's most prestigious private collections.

This 45 minute film shows him throwing in his workshop and features unique footage of him firing his Anagama kiln, with the help of British potter Phil Rogers who commentates on the process. The film ends with Matsuzaki's 2007 major exhibition of pots at the Goldmark Gallery in Uppingham, Rutland. You can visit us online at

To view latest work by Matsuzaki visit his goldmark website here:

You can buy a copy of this film on DVD for just £10 click here:

Biography – Ken Matsuzaki was born in 1950 in Tokyo. Growing up Matsuzaki's life was filled with art and culture and his family's influence began to show when, around the age of 16, Matsuzaki developed an interest in ceramics. In 1972, after graduating from Tamagawa University's College of Arts, he began a 3 year apprenticeship with (National Living Treasure) Tatsuzo Shimaoka.

Nearing the end of his apprenticeship Matsuzaki asked Shimaoka if he would consider extending it for another 2 years, whilst he learned to develop his own style, and began creating his own motifs and palette of glazes that he would use for the next 15 years. Today, Matsuzaki has exhibited widely in Japan, America and the UK and his work is held in major galleries worldwide.

What is Goldmark?

A family business started by Mike Goldmark, we've been selling art from the Goldmark Gallery in Uppingham, UK for over 40 years and hold over 50,000 items in stock. Explore a wide range of the very best art and ceramics available to you through our website where you'll also find scholarship pages, books, online catalogues and even GoldmarkTV! Enjoy your visit here:

Warren MacKenzie and Randy Johnston | Two Great American Potters | GOLDMARK

2 Comments / Randy Johnston / admin

Warren MacKenzie and Randy Johnston | Two Great American Potters. Opens Saturday 23rd June 2018. Major Ceramics Exhibition
This won’t happen again.

This is the rarest of opportunities to acquire work by two of the most important potters in American ceramics: Warren MacKenzie and Randy Johnston.

We have managed to source a magnificent collection of over 100 pots by MacKenzie, the grandfather of American studio ceramics. Having trained with Bernard Leach in St Ives, MacKenzie was the first to bring the great Japanese potter, Shoji Hamada to America and remains the last living link with their generation. A recent New York retrospective featuring similar pieces sold out at significantly higher prices. Our exhibition, complete with catalogue and film, opens in Uppingham on Saturday 23rd June. Pots are now in the UK and are available for purchase.

We will also be showing the latest work of Randy Johnston. Having studied with Warren MacKenzie and Hamada's favourite apprentice, Tatsuzo Shimaoka, Johnston is one of the most exciting and innovative potters working in America today. He is recognized internationally as an artist who has pursued functional expression and brought a fresh aesthetic vision to contemporary form, and for his many contributions to the development of wood kiln technology in the United States. We are delighted to announce that he will be joining us at the gallery on Saturday 23rd June.

What is Goldmark?
A family business started by Mike Goldmark, we've been selling art from the Goldmark Gallery in Uppingham, UK for over 40 years and hold over 50,000 items in stock. Explore a wide range of the very best art and ceramics available to you through our website goldmarkart.com where you'll also find scholarship pages, books, online catalogues and even GoldmarkTV! Enjoy your visit here:

At we publish beautiful films and articles for new buyers and seasoned collectors alike, with new content posted every week.

See something you like and you can head over to , our online shop, where we sell an extraordinary range of art and ceramics.

FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM
PINTEREST …
GOOGLE PLUS
YOUTUBE …
VIMEO

Randy Johnston | An Expansive Vision – feature film about American potter | GOLDMARK

22 Comments / Randy Johnston / admin

Our documentary tells the story of one of America's most respected studio potters, Randy Johnston. Set against the backdrop of his picturesque Wisconsin studio, it gives a revealing and moving insight into his artistic journey. Kicking against his family's desire for him to become a doctor, Johnston tells of his early travels to Japan, meeting the great Shoji Hamada and apprenticing to National Living Treasure, Tatsuzo Shimaoka. We are also taken on a visit to the Minnesotan studio of his lifelong mentor and friend, 94 year old American legend, Warren MacKenzie. A deep thinker, Johnston talks about his approach to his working practice and his philosophy on art and teaching.

Having studied with Warren MacKenzie and Hamada's favourite apprentice, Tatsuzo Shimaoka, Johnston is one of the most exciting and innovative potters working in America today. He is recognized internationally as an artist who has pursued functional expression and brought a fresh aesthetic vision to contemporary form, and for his many contributions to the development of wood kiln technology in the United States.

See more films like this at

At we publish beautiful films and articles for new buyers and seasoned collectors alike, with new content posted every week.

See something you like and you can head over to , our online shop, where we sell an extraordinary range of art and ceramics.

FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM
PINTEREST …
GOOGLE PLUS
YOUTUBE …
VIMEO

#GoldmarkFilms #GoldmarkDocumentary #Goldmark

Jean-Nicolas Gérard: “The Potter’s Potter” film about French slipware potter

25 Comments / French Ceramics / admin

This documentary follows French slipware potter Jean-Nicolas Gérard as he prepares for his 2013 exhibition at the Goldmark Gallery.

Jean-Nicolas describes himself as an artisan craftsman who, above all, wants his pottery to be used and enjoyed. His work ranges from small mugs, bowls, plates and dishes to large jars and press moulded platters. All are decorated with slip and many with sgraffito and finger marks. He takes the tradition of European slipware and infuses it with elements from modern painting, medieval earthenware and Japanese pottery. In the film we watch him throwing, glazing and decorating and explore the influences that nature and his surrounding landscape have on his pottery.

View Gérard's work for sale at the Goldmark Gallery here:

To buy this DVD for your collection visit:

Biography – Jean-Nicolas Gérard was born in Brazzaville (Congo) in 1954 and returned to France in 1961. He started studying ceramics in 1978 and was Jean Biagini's student at École des Beaux-Arts in Aix-en-Provence. He also trained with Claire Bogino. Often labelled the potters' potter Gerard's work has a spontaneity that so many strive for.

Gérard's work has now gained international acclaim and he has exhibited all over the world, including America, Australia, China and Japan. He is one of those rare potters who brings genuine life and gusto to contemporary slipware, investing the tradition of terre vernissée with a fresh and expressive energy unlike any other.

What is Goldmark?