Ikuko Iwamoto is a London-based Japanese artist who creates imaginative porcelain tableware and sculpture inspired by the delicate, unusual forms found in the microscopic world. She first encountered ceramics as a student in Nara in 1990 and has worked professionally in the UK for almost two decades. Her practice combines precision and playfulness, exploring the boundaries between functionality, texture, and form.
Ikuko’s current work focuses on sustainability and the environmental impact of ceramic production, particularly the tension between energy-intensive processes and a desire for natural, responsible making. With QEST support, she will travel to Japan to study traditional Kintsugi and Urushi lacquer techniques with Yasuo Hashizume, Tsutsumi Asakichi, and Mitsumi Irahara. This training will take place in Kyoto, Wakayama, and Tokyo, connecting her to Japan’s centuries-old lacquer traditions while developing non-toxic, renewable materials as alternatives to modern adhesives.
Ikuko’s ambition is to integrate Urushi into her ceramics practice, creating work that reflects both environmental consciousness and cultural continuity, and that embodies her vision of materials returning gracefully to the earth.
