Masayuki Imai (Japan, 1930 – 2023)

Born in Osaka, Japan, Masayuki Imai was a member of the Japan Art Academy and a designated Person of Cultural Merit. After graduating in 1947 from the Metal Industry Department of Takehara Technical High School in Hiroshima Prefecture, he apprenticed under Yasushi Kusube in 1952. Imai exhibited widely at the prestigious Nitten (Japan Fine Arts Exhibition) and other major shows in Japan and abroad, receiving numerous honors including the Japan Ceramic Society Award, the Prime Minister’s Award, the Hiroshima Cultural Award, the Kyoto Prefectural Cultural Merit Award, the Myōō Honor Prize, the Kyoto Cultural Award for Lifetime Achievement, the Chinese Culture Award, and formal recognition as a Person of Cultural Merit.

His works are held in museum collections around the world, celebrated for their masterful fusion of traditional ceramic techniques and contemporary artistic vision.