BLAST FROM THE PAST

This wonderful kohiki faceted vase is a blast from the past, both my past and the potter’s past as well. Dating from the 1990s, this Korean Joseon influenced kohiki vase is a classic example of the work of Yoshimura Masaya (b. 1938) who’s works span various traditional archetypes as in this case to rather unique, contemporary interpretations of the singular use of slip. 

This mentori-hanaire is pure simplicity, perfect lines, full, dynamic volume and a surface that is one part simplicity and another part complexity in just measured balance. Adding to the landscape, each faceted line shows through the slip along with part of the lip focusing one’s attention away from the purity of the surface, surveying details that almost seem out of place yet end up helping to define the form and pot overall. It is clear that Yoshimura spent a lifetime pursuing and dedicated to kohiki slipware while adding his own modern and idiosyncratic fingerprint to a rather old tradition which spans centuries and countries in its origin.

A BIT OF EVERYTHING

I am sure that I am repetitive in my use of descriptions for a great number of wood fired pots but despite that fact, I think I choose my words somewhat carefully and with an eye on what I am actually thinking and not some device easily put to use. What gets me there is this katakuchi style mizusashi, truly this has that medieval, old presence, like it was plucked out of the kitchen and pressed into service by some tea master of old including the manufacturing of a custom lid to complete the package. The surface both inside and out is just a wonderful array of effects, a bit of everything as it were, on this well fired pot, crafted by the hands Sugimoto Sadamitsu and fired under his watchful eye and decades of experience to make such a simple, humble and captivating vessel.     

Timeless, another descriptor I use well too often is perhaps among the best ways to characterize this mizusashi as it is seemingly not bound in the past or the present, it somehow is on its very own parallel timeline. The foot is flat and covered in ash while the front and back present somewhat differing landscapes where the one side is covered in streaking, cascading ash and the other is a blend of runny ash and rich red hi-iron color fumed during the firing. However, it is the interior that holds the biggest surprise, once the custom lacquer lid is removed, the interior is a series of waterfalls that culminate in a large, pure emerald green pool that is a bit like encountering a pot at the end of the proverbial rainbow. Timeless, wabi-sabi, medieval, classic; in the end it doesn’t matter how it is described, this Shigaraki mizusashi has quite the landscape and just sings instead of speaking. 

 

SAFE BET

Since I have wrapped up my recent orders, today was the day that I decided to take some time and make a few stoneware teabowls for myself. They are a bit time consuming as I deal with each one from start to finish; I throw them, alter them a bit, blow-dry them, address the lip, deal with the base and foot and then give them a gentle, diagonal shave. The tools involved are simple, while throwing, nothing but a sponge and then afterward I use a knife, a rasp, heat-gun, sponge and one of my favorite new tools in multi-packs, my Lowe’s special shims which I sand to a sharp edge. Perhaps what I enjoy most about these teabowls is the amount of lift they exhibit from a somewhat smaller foot which in truth is neither too small or too large, just the right pedestal for the job. Now that there are a group made, I will wait on them drying and likely move toward the Oribe and Kuro-Oribe surfaces, time will tell but it is a pretty safe bet.

I SEE WHERE YOU ARE GOING

I think as you look at this very early Shino mizusashi by Tamaoki Yasuo, it is rather easy to think to yourself, I see where you are going based on this pot and his work of the past five decades. I am not 100% sure when this was made though I suspect in the 80s based on several shows of his work I attended in 1991 and 1992 as well as a number of catalogues, but his manner of handling clay and his glazing is more or less easy to identify even in this early and less mature work. The fine mogusa clay was casually thrown with little manipulation off the wheel, the gallery is study and perfect for this thick, thrown lid and knob which is just right for the scale and function. Though early, you can see the foundation of many of Tamaoki’s Shino formulas in this glaze which marries well with the softish form, simple throwing marks, taper and indentation. The glaze appears to be applied rather haphazardly but there are several applications to get to this point showing off a rich red where the pot was held during glazing to a soft, slightly toasty white running down the surface making full effect of gravity and showcasing the vertical qualities of the pot. 

Now I won’t go as far as to say it has that old Edo style appearance but it does capture some of that feeling while making a break from the stiffer forms and glazes of many of the 70s Mino potters, excluding Arakawa and Tokuro. In truth, I find it rather intriguing to be able to draw that “through line” in the work from present day all the way back to where it began.

YAKISHIME SHIGARAKI

Well fired yakishime Shigaraki chawan by Yoshisuji Keiji. This somewhat simple chawan, appearing almost as it came off the wheel has a wide array of glaze effects from a dry, dark ash to a coating of ice like, light green ash where the entire bowl is completely surround with the wood fired effect that you can see. The foot works well with the form, on the small side which I really like, creating a nice pedestal for the bowl which also provides some nice lift and creates a great shadow line as well.      

Yoshisuji Keiji (b.1952) lives and works in Shizuoka Pref. and apprenticed under the internationally recognized Shigaraki potter, Kohyama Yasuhisa. Making a wide variety of wood fired, yakishime pottery out of Shigaraki clay, Yoshisuji makes both functional and non-functional ceramics including some sculptural pieces which includes his well know and sought after “apple” and Buddha hand okimono. Though this chawan shows the distinct influences of his master, Yoshisuji works with his own forms and distinct firing style creating pieces that pay tribute not only to Kohyama but the wood fired tradition rooted in Shigaraki and now spread across much of Japan.

You can see this chawan over on my Trocadero marketplace;

https://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1505092/YAKISHIME-SHIGARAKI-CHAWAN-BY-YOSHISUGI-KEIJI

EoD REVISITED

I put up a bowl that I made as a spur of the moment, end of day kind of project and it occurred to me I never put it up finished. Illustrated is a simple porcelain v-bowl with chattered black slip and a soda blue glaze to complete the package. As I mentioned before, trying to make the chattered pattern look a bit distinct, I use the very corner of the tool and in the end, I get what I get and each piece looks just a bit different from each other. I will say when working in series of slipped and carved pieces, turning to this simple and enjoyable technique reduces the sameness of carving a dozen grasses pattern pots in a row and I am all for keeping things interesting.

TSURUKUBI

My understanding is that this vase and another that I had here were bought from an auction house in Japan a number of years ago, a gourd vase and this crane's neck (tsurukubi) vase, one Iga and this one Shigaraki pottery by Furutani Michio. This hanaire was fired quite well and has a rather nice landscape composed of three distinct strata of color from the light brown area at the base, the greyish-blue collar with some additional ash effects to the dark, almost ominous nature of the upper most part of the neck and mouth capping off the long neck. 

When I first saw this pot I thought this was a slightly unusual form for Furutani Michio and then over the years I have seen several more though each one it own unique piece with its own unique surface also proving that no form gently nuanced or sophisticatedly designed was beyond the reach of potter and flame. This vase has a rather engaging tactile presence where rough gives way to smooth in patches like it is battling for some supremacy but the real winner in this fight is the viewer seeing the array of wood fired and visual effects that go beyond traditional Shigaraki pottery clearly representing the firing, surfaces and philosophy of one of the greatest Shigaraki (and Iga) potters of the 20th century, Furutani Michio.

RECIPRICOL

Recently a friend sent me three wonderful books as a gift, one of them was a large folio on Kawai Kanjiro and the binding is all handmade Japanese paper. Refusing payment, even for the postage I wondered what could I sent to offset this debt as we have something of a reciprocal back and forth going on, more of my pots seemed a bit insignificant and then along came a chawan. As I was searching the auctions, I came across what I thought was exactly the right chawan; exotic yohen temmoku surface, just a bit on the small side and what the dealer assured me was a bowl that was not too heavy. The recipient of the bowl is an avid tea drinker, putting his pots to hard use and he is rather particular about size, weight and of course aesthetics. Several weeks later the bowl arrived here and was shipped off to its new owner. 

The chawan is by Ii Koji who I know very little about though I have seen several chawan, a Kuan style celadon vase and misc. guinomi, yunomi and small plates. The surfaces are somewhat similar but I thought this one worked quite well among those that I have seen. With any luck this will find favor at its new home, be used hard, put away dry and enjoyed for many years to come.

BURUGURE

I have to admit, this covered jar was nearly impossible for me to photograph accurately. Thrown out of stoneware with black and then combed white slip, the base glaze was my Oribe and over that went two different iron glazes to the effect you see here. As you may be able to tell, the secondary glazes were applied to just below the combed slip and during the firing they all melted and ran down the pot thanks to our constant companions, gravity and thermodynamics. The result is a rather broody appearing slip-jar with a variety of colors running down the surface with the combed slip design calling out, what about me? This wasn’t exactly what I had been going for but considering this application had only been tried out on smaller pieces, I can’t honestly say that I really knew the final outcome. What I can tell you is that I had made five of these covered jars in total, two fairly traditional Oribe, one amber and then two in what ever this version of Kuro-Oribe should be called, maybe I should go with Burūgurē-Oribe moving forward?

MEMORIAL DAY 2025