Ceramic districts as a landscape of practice: a case study of knowledge sharing in Japan

Abstract

This study examines how a landscape of practice (LoP) influences learning activities within its constituent communities of practice (CoPs), focusing on how individuals navigate both enhancing and inhibiting factors. Using a qualitative case study approach, we investigated four ceramic districts in Japan, conducting semi-structured interviews with 50 artists between 2014 and 2024. The findings reveal that ceramic districts, acting as LoPs, often foster a conservative culture led by senior artists that creates a “dual dilemma” for younger artists, forcing them to balance the need to learn traditional skills against the desire for creative originality, and the need for community integration against pressure to conform. To resolve this, young artists adopt three primary strategies: 1) “separating belonging” by participating in multiple CoPs for different purposes; 2) “adjusting learning” by shifting their engagement goals in senior-led CoPs from learning to networking; and 3) “bootleg learning” by secretly developing their own styles in youth-only CoPs. This research contributes to social learning theories by demonstrating that LoPs can exert negative pressure on CoPs and by identifying the active, strategic behaviours members employ to overcome these challenges, thereby successfully continuing to learn and innovate within complex social structures defined by interwoven geographical and epistemic boundaries.