Princess Margaret's Grandson Sam Chatto Attended the Japanese State Banquet
At last night's white tie affair at Buckingham Palace—the state banquet in honor of Japan's Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako—there was a surprise royal guest in attendance: Princess Margaret's grandson, Samuel "Sam" Chatto.
Chatto, the eldest son of Lady Sarah Chatto and Daniel Chatto, is 29th in the British line of succession and rarely attends formal events with the British royal family. However, he was among the guests at Buckingham Palace to celebrate the Japanese royals, likely, because he has ties to the country.
As an artist, Chatto recently studied and worked in the country, according to details of an upcoming exhibition of his ceramics at Make Hauser & Wirth.
"Chatto is fascinated by the work of Bernard Leech and Shōji Hamada and the tradition of cultural exchange between Britain and Japan—especially the importance of the tea vessel," the gallery notes. "The cup, perhaps more than any other form, is a very intimate object, which Chatto believes must contain the perfect balance of weight, delicacy and attention to form. He regards the tea set as the perfect combination of form and function."
They add, "In 2023 he accepted an apprenticeship with porcelain master Yagi Akira in Kyoto, Japan. Learning the strict traditional Japanese technique of throwing was fascinating and often a completely opposite approach to Western working methods. He was predominantly working with porcelain, which was the most transformative aspect of the apprenticeship. For Chatto, porcelain is an immaculate material of memory, which keeps its own life throughout the process of throwing. The work he produced in Japan attempted to capture this sense of movement, fluidity and life."
The other members of the royal family who attended the banquet last night were all senior working royals; in addition to King Charles and Queen Camilla, Prince William, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester were among the guests.
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