Kutani's Tokuda Yasokichi The Fourth!

Flipping through the local newspaper the other day I came across an ad for an exhibition at Seibu Department store in Numazu. It was to commemorate yet another time-honored bequeathment; this time for Kutani's Tokuda family. Last year YasokichiIII passed away and this year his eldest daughter became YasokichiIV (b.1961). This is quite a rare occasion as I can't recall offhand the last time a daughter took over a family's kiln, let alone such a name. The gallery space was quite small with only about two dozen works on display; I found them to have a softer touch then YasokichiIII's work, the tones were lighter with the forms being generally the same. Her red Kutani wall plate I felt was not yet a finished work and shows the need for her to develop her brush skills further. Nonetheless a very monumental time in Kutani's history and for the Tokuda family; I wish her well.