In his ceramics, Kōji Toda touches a distant past, and a spiritual sense. A former footballer, he made a considerable change in his life when he switched to ceramics, and entered training with Kasama based Motohiko Ito in 1998.

Today he is known for his brooding large pieces of yakishime (unglazed pottery that takes it shades and patterns from the kiln movements of ash) that recall ancient metalwork or the Sue ware pottery of the 5th-8th centuries. He uses clay that he finds himself on mountain walks, and fires in a wood-fired kiln. In Toda’s hands the forms are imbued with something ineffable. He has exhibited these pieces in New York, and around Japan. They are full of mystique and repose, and there is some continuity in his gallery work to the ceramics he coordinates for the home under name Okaueyakumo (eight clouds above a hill). A collaboration that Toda directs, this output is principally a range of teaware, that provide their own moment of peace when used.