Mingei - Art Without Heroes

Mingei - Art Without Heroes

edited by Roisin Inglesby

Contributions by Roisin Inglesby, Yuko Kikuchi, Dasom Sung, Anna Jackson, Aaron Angell, Sam Thorne, Adam Sutherland, Okazaki Manami, Yoshizawa Tomo and Naomi Pollock

An exploration of the evolution of the Japanese Mingei (folk art) movement within the context of today’s concerns. This book is from the exhibit at the William Morris Gallery, London, 2024.

Originating in Japan in the 1920s, the Mingei movement was based on the principle that beauty is inherent in handmade, everyday objects created by anonymous craftspeople. Spearheaded by the philosopher Yanagi Sōetsu, and potters Hamada Shōji and Bernard Leach, the movement sought to elevate the status of folk craft in a rapidly modernizing society. 

This richly illustrated book covers a wide range of objects associated with Mingei, from ceramics and furniture to textiles and toys, alongside a series of profiles of leading designers and makers working in Japan today. Contributors from a variety of backgrounds explore Mingei’s origins, interpretations, and contemporary implications, shedding new light on the ways in which the principles of the movement remain relevant to today’s personal, social, and environmental concerns.

Roisin Inglesby is curator at the William Morris Gallery.

Yale University Press, 2024, hardcover, 9 x 11 inches, 168 pages.