Wakusei — A body of Work by Tenshin Juba
New Work, New Space / High-Wood fire kiln sits atop a hill with a view of Rokko Mountains below / Images of new experimental work from the Wakusei Collection
Wakusei —
A body of Work by Tenshin Juba
In his hillside atelier in Japan, alchemist potter Tenshin Juba works in rhythm with the cycles of nature. His practice reflects a profound connection to his surroundings — he gathers raw materials directly from the land: rocks, fertile clay, fallen trees, chestnuts, and other organic matter from the terrain he has explored since childhood.
So familiar it has become part of him, this landscape is both refuge and playground — a place that continually stirs his desire to experiment, to push further into the unknown within the known.
The body of work spans primary objets and sculptures made to exist in dialogue with their environments — intended for both interior and exterior settings. Some pieces invite quiet contemplation indoors; others are suited to the outdoors, where they weather and evolve like living sculptures within a garden.
From “wild” Objet-Matchawan to orbs resembling planets, the Wakusei forms echo the character of planets themselves — unpredictable and mysterious, rugged and molten, suspended between calm and chaos, shaped by fire and time.
Tenshin Juba’s terrain / mineral-rich organic matter for ash-glaze
Details. Experimenting with various melting points of organic matter, rock and clay
In Japanese, 惑星 (wakusei) means planet, written with the characters 惑 (waku, “to wander or be moved”) and 星 (hoshi / sei, “star”). Literally translated, it is wandering star — a poetic reflection of celestial bodies moving in their own orbits. The name perfectly captures both the spirit of this work and Juba’s instinct to explore new worlds within his own terrain.
Central to Tenshin’s process is the transformative power of fire. Each work undergoes a high wood firing, reaching 2336°F / 1280°C over the course of roughly seven days. Juba tends his kiln with painstaking care, feeling the heat and listening to the subtle cues of the flames. By touch and intuition, he determines the precise moment to open the kiln, allowing the alchemy of fire and earth to reveal its final forms.. This elemental ritual reveals a spectrum of surfaces — glassy pools of silica, metallic hues in inky black, nude, and platinum, and rugged eruptions of stone formed through his ichi-haze (“stone-burst”) technique. In working with fire and raw earth, Juba continues one of humanity’s oldest relationships — the dialogue between hand, element, and transformation.
In the Collection, Tenshin Juba’s works embody the tension between earth and sky — objects that feel both ancient and newly discovered. From his hands to yours, let the conversation begin.
Representing Juba Tenshin in the USA since 2016