When Akira Satake left Japan for the United States in 1981, he brought his banjo and cameras to San Francisco with the intent to continue pursuing a career as a musician and photographer. “In high school I played guitar and mandolin, but banjo became my main instrument,” he says of his youth in Osaka. “Being a banjo player in Japan did not seem like a good career choice, so I went to photography school, worked, and saved my money to go to the United States.”
When he and his wife, Cynthia Pierce, arrived in Asheville in 2003, he brought his banjo, his cameras, and a growing concentration—some might say obsession—with the art and craft of ceramics. “I was 42 years old when I started learning and practicing, and people thought I was crazy,” he recalls. “I had a very successful career as a musician and producer. But I couldn’t stop. I loved it.”
The music business career began in earnest when he moved from San Francisco to Greenwich Village in 1983, settled in Brooklyn, and started a music production company for a large Japanese firm in a state-of-the- art studio in Manhattan. He had a large staff—and so much stress he couldn’t sleep. He thought about trying meditation or practicing yoga, but the notion of making pottery had always appealed to him, so he signed up for a three- hour class. “That day I thought, ‘Wow, this feels so good. I think I’m going to do this for my life’s work.’”
Pinching pots didn’t help him sleep, but it did calm his stress and pique his passion so much that he took a three-month course in pinching pots and then a three-month course in the wheel. “That was pretty much my formal education,” he admits— enough to set him on a professional path. Within a year of the first time he touched clay, he was accepted at the prestigious Lincoln Center Crafts Show. “My work was much cheaper then,” he says with a laugh.
Seeking room to grow and proximity to nature, he took the advice of a sculptor acquaintance and visited Asheville; his now-22-year residency vastly expanded his portfolio, adding sculptural work to his functional pottery. He built a home studio and a wood-fired kiln, and opened two galleries in the River Arts District, where visitors were introduced to the Japanese style and ethos he brings to his work.
“Whatever I make there is a Japanese influence because I grew up there, but in the Japanese sense, it is finding beauty in the imperfect,” he explains. “Not simply imperfect, but meaningfully and skillfully imperfect. Nature is beautifully imperfect, and living amid the nature of this area influences me every day.”
On September 27, 2024, nature took a tragic turn when tropical storm Helene wreaked havoc on Western North Carolina; Asheville’s River Arts District was devastated by flooding, including Satake’s Gallery Mugen in Riverview Station. His equipment and furnishings were destroyed, but with the help of many hands and after five days of washing, 60 percent of the pottery was saved. A friend offered room in her space in the upper portion of RAD, and in November 2024 he opened the current iteration of Gallery Mugen.
Mugen translates to “infinite” in Japanese, and indeed, the collection of visually arresting, unique ceramics seems limitless in its expressions.
His ikebana containers, or vases, are both sculptural and functional, designed as vessels for the ancient Japanese style of flower arranging that Satake describes as “making art of space.” His sculptural work includes natural wood ash—unglazed pieces go into the wood kiln for a 50-hour firing, and flying ash falls onto and fuses into the clay, making a natural glaze. His tanka pieces are fired in a gas or electric kiln, then fired again with charcoal in a closed saggar box; the vapor carbonation makes the clay black. And his traditional kohiki pieces involve brushing a white slip onto dark clay; Satake’s technique stretches the clay in such a way that it cracks and distorts the brush marks.
“When I was a music producer, my job was to bring artists to the studio, find their talent and beauty, and do
as little as possible to let them shine,” Satake says. “I feel the same way in making pottery—let the clay shine. It is a collaboration with clay, fire, and me. It is serendipity, and it is beautiful.”
Where to Find Akira Satake Ceramics
Satake’s Gallery Mugen is open every day at 10:30 a.m. and he sells his pieces online. Look for Satake’s hands-on workshops, during which he demonstrates his various techniques for groups of 20 ($900 per person).
keep reading
In the Field
A Forestry Camp Grows in Asheville
In a historic woodland setting in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Burial Beer Company’s sprawling new digs tell the story of the community who helped to shape it, past and present.
On the Road
Asheville
Nestled in a valley surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains, Asheville, North Carolina, is an outdoor mecca with a thriving art scene, hippie charm, and a beer culture at a fever pitch.
On the Road
New Restaurants in North Carolina
From martini bars to upscale diners, contributor and Tar Heel native Jenn Rice gives an overview of the new faces characterizing North Carolina’s dining scene.