1843 (Tenpō 13) – 1916 (Taishō 5)
Born in the 13th year of the Tenpō era (1843), he was the fourth son of Miyagawa Chōzō and was originally named Toranosuke.
After the death of his father, he moved to Yokohama in 1870 (Meiji 3) with the encouragement of Prince Arisugawa and the support of Satsuma domain retainer Komatsu Tatewaki. There, he built a kiln in the Fujiyamashita area of Ōta Village (present-day Kanoe-dai, Minato-ku, Yokohama City) and began producing works under the name "Makuzu Kōzan" and "Makuzu ware."
In the first year of the Meiji era (1868), he was invited by Igi San-en-sai Tadasumi, a tea master and senior retainer of the Ikeda clan in Okayama, to instruct at the Bizen-Mushiake kiln.
Starting with the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia (Meiji 9), he exhibited widely at international expositions through the late Meiji period and received numerous awards.
He also exhibited at the World's Columbian Exposition held in Chicago in 1893 (Meiji 26), which helped the name “Makuzu ware” become known worldwide.
In 1896 (Meiji 29), he was appointed an Imperial Household Artist (Teishitsu Gigei-in) — the highest honor for an artist at the time — becoming only the second ceramic artist to receive this title after Seifu Yohei III.
He passed away in 1916 (Taishō 5) at the age of 74.
Because he exhibited at many world expositions, a large number of his works remain overseas. His pieces are held in major institutions such as the British Museum and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Even today, they are highly valued both in Japan and abroad, where they are often referred to as “Makuzu ware.”