伊藤 慶二

Keiji Ito (b. 1935) works freely across a wide range of media—including ceramics, oil painting, charcoal, installation, and collage—without being bound by specific methods or materials. After studying oil painting at Musashino Art School (now Musashino Art University), he joined the Gifu Prefectural Ceramics Research Institute, where a pivotal encounter with Sakuzo Hineno—a ceramic designer and a leading figure in the craft movement—led him to fully embark on a path in ceramics. Incorporating a variety of mediums, he developed his unique world with remarkable freedom and lightness, evolving from ceramic forms to sculptural objects.

Currently, Ito is the subject of a large-scale solo exhibition, Keiji Ito: Prayer – Now, the Future, at the Museum of Modern Ceramic Art, Gifu. He is also holding a solo show at kaufmann repetto, a contemporary art gallery in Milan. Furthermore, from October 15 of this year, he will simultaneously present solo exhibitions at both the Kyobashi and Roppongi spaces of Tomio Koyama Gallery, as well as at Kakiden Gallery in Tokyo—demonstrating his ever-growing presence both in Japan and internationally.

Although already widely recognized and highly acclaimed, Ito continues to seek new modes of expression without settling for stability. His unwavering creative pursuit has earned him deep respect, and his works are included in the collections of numerous museums and foundations, including the National Crafts Museum, Tokyo; the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto; the Honolulu Museum of Art; the Art Gallery of New South Wales; the Everson Museum of Art in the United States; and the Marciano Art Foundation.