DAISAK’s “Tennis (Firing)” at Kohtoh Gallery merges ceramics and play, dissolving the boundary between art and utility. Tableware and sculptural works reveal a rhythm of making that echoes the artist’s renewed engagement with tennis.

Kohtoh Gallery is pleased to present DAISAK’s solo exhibition “Tennis (Firing)”, on view from October 17 (Fri) to November 2 (Sun), 2025. Born in Kyoto in 1986, DAISAK is a ceramic artist based in Kyotango, Kyoto Prefecture. In addition to holding numerous solo and group exhibitions across Japan, he also produces practical ceramics such as cups and plates. His functional yet playful tableware, often adorned with softly drawn illustrations, has captivated fans both in Japan and abroad. DAISAK traces the origin of his ceramic practice to his childhood love of shaping clay and LEGO, as well as to his imaginative storytelling. These early forms of play—combined with his long-standing fascination with dioramas, model kits, and architectural structures—have evolved into a distinctive artistic world that expands the expressive potential of ceramics. In this exhibition, DAISAK presents both tableware and sculptural works without distinguishing between “artworks” and “products.” In his past exhibitions, he intentionally excluded his functional ceramics, but feeling uneasy about the rigid boundary between “art” and “product,” he now seeks to dissolve it. Everyday utensils and art objects are shown on the same plane, revealing the artist’s fluid perception of creation as part of daily life. For DAISAK, tableware is not separate from his art practice—it is an extension of life itself, imbued with the same sense of imagination and narrative as his sculptures. The exhibition invites visitors to sense this gentle connection between daily life and creative practice. In addition, new works inspired by tennis, a sport the artist has been deeply immersed in recently, will be on view. Having played tennis throughout junior and high school, DAISAK resumed the sport as an adult and discovered surprising parallels between the discipline of play and his artistic process. For him, both tennis and ceramics are rhythmic, repetitive acts rooted in everyday life—each informing the other and leading to new forms of expression. The exhibition will also feature a video work filmed by the artist himself, capturing the sounds of the court and voices of play, creating a resonant space where life and art meet.