UOZUMI Iraku III

Iraku Uozumi III is one of Japan’s foremost masters of dora (gong) casting and a designated Living National Treasure celebrated for preserving and advancing the ancient sahari metalworking tradition. Born in Naga Town, Kanazawa City, he trained from an early age under his grandfather, Uozumi Iraku I, himself a Living National Treasure and a pioneering figure in the art of dora craftsmanship. Rooted in the spiritual aesthetics of the tea ceremony, Uozumi’s work centers on the meditative resonance of the dora, whose low, contemplative tone is sounded before entering the tea room to quiet the mind. Each piece is cast in sahar, a bronze-tin alloy requiring extraordinary control, and reflects the wabi-sabi ethos passed through generations of the Uozumi family.

Over a career spanning seven decades, Uozumi has exhibited widely, from the Japan Traditional Kōgei Exhibition and MOA Museum of Art to New York’s Asia Week, and he has held leadership roles including Chairman of the Kaga Metalwork Artist Association and instructor at Kanazawa College of Art. His works reside in major public collections such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Yakushiji Temple, and Shitennoji Temple. In 2002, he was designated a holder of Important Intangible Cultural Property for dora, affirming his place among Japan’s most esteemed metal artists.