SOUTHERN MAKERS Firing On All Cylinders

An Asheville ceramist pulls from his Japanese heritage

- KAY WEST

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.”