FLORA

Though my wife's job keeps her rather busy, she has planted an array of flora that surrounds the house, especially noticeable through our windows at ground level. Tulips, iris, daffodils and an number of other flowers and bushes are in constant bloom and perpetually visited by the local wildlife; rabbits, fox, turkey, deer and every imaginable type of bird from kestrel to bluebird and cardinal to hummingbird, it makes for a comforting environment and a great place to work. As I look around the yard, I am constantly reminded of the trips to Japan, the gardens and temple grounds and the various potteries visited, many with splendid kakehana hung in alcoves and on pillars with vibrant and solitary flowers completing the vases. Illustrated is a simple lantern style tsubo by Iwabuchi Shigeya. Elegant and simpatico with the single branch, the multi-slipped and salt fired pot shows a rich blush and gohonde style areas about the pot a style and technique the potter excelled at. The quiet, even elegant combination of flower and clay makes for a dramatic and contemplative display that only nature at its richest can best.

"Nature does not complete things. She is chaotic. man must finish and he does so by making a garden and building a wall."   Robert Frost

 

山荘

Refined, elegant, simple and serene yet austere and infused with purpose, this Hagi chawan is the epitome of clarity and as classic a chawan as one is likely to encounter. Made by Juyo Mukei Bunkazai, Miwa Kyuwa (1896-1981) in his 70th year, the bowl is the sum total of his life experience distilled in to a single pot, neither flashy or presumptuous, this chawan speaks in a quiet, even muted voice. Friend and noted 20th century chajin, Sokuchusai Mujin Sosa (1901-1979) inscribed the inside of the box lid for Kyuwa and named this chawan; YAMAZATO, Mountain Retreat, conjuring up the austere and solitary meeting of fellow aficionados having tea out of a bowl just like this. The surface has a softness in its appearance with a slight diaphanous quality where the glaze has created a thicker coat around the mouth which drips down into the body of the bowl while the form curves seductively off the foot creating a wonderful feel while resting in the hands during use and surely to the eye as well. This chawan is indeed simple at a casual glance but there is nothing more complicated than simplicity and like many such pieces it can provide a lifetime of conversation and constant discoveries that few pots can ever manage. 

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." Leonardo Da Vinci

 

ANOTHER MEMORIAL DAY

I just wanted to take a moment to express my (and hopefully our) extreme thanks for the duty given and sacrifice made by so many to ensure the freedom of our young Nation.

(Illustration by one of my favorite print artists, Rockwell Kent)

OPEN TO INTERPRETATION

The simple wood box has written only four kanji and a vermillion red seal, it reads; CHAWAN, SEIMEI. At a certain level, the style of the bowl is open to interpretation but if you look at it and know the potter, it bares the unmistakable bearing of an E-Garatsu chawan infused with wonderful color and casual brushwork and form. If you exclude the more sculptural works of Tsuji Seimei, a great many of his pieces are about subtlety and baring the forms for either simple glazing or wood firing, these works have a profound quality to them where they resonate substance, purpose and even calm. It is easy to get mired in adjectives regarding his pottery, but as you look at this simple and elegant chawan, each and every viewer will have new descriptors to add to the list. Tsuji Seimei has left a large body of work that travels along a pathway which he built one stone at a time, lined with clay and fire and a thorough understanding of the flesh and bones of his chosen craft.

"Beware that you do not lose the substance by grasping at shadows."  Aesop

白円相

I am quite a fan of the Rimpa influenced Shino works of the Mino master, Wakao Toshisada, but I have to say there is something rather elemental and subtle, even serene in his more traditional works like the illustrated chawan. Having a strong Momoyama influence, this gently tapering Nezumi-Shino chawan has a magnificent shiro-enso (white circle) on the face which dominates the omote and gathers the viewer in to the bowl. The textured surface has small "cells" of glaze which lets iron peek through, painting a soft landscape on which the purity of the white clay shows through to dominate the ceramic canvas. Wakao has made tremendous use of the negative space on the surface which is subtly articulated by glaze texture and form, acting as a vehicle for the central device of the pot much like a great scroll painting though in three dimensions as only a master potter could achieve. The sheer simplicity of the decoration creates a chawan of exceptional clarity and the strength of form brings to mind a bowl that great chajin would have gladly competed for during a time long ago forgotten.

STACKED

I was in the studio the other day and happened to look over at a shelf that is way up near the ceiling and mostly obscured by a heating duct and saw these groups of various mugs all stacked up in groups of two and threes. I am not sure why, but it just struck me that this is how pots are used and stored, certainly our cupboards are filled with bowls, cups, mugs and dished all stacked up according to size and those used most frequently toward the front. It just seemed natural to photograph this pair of Persian blue and underglaze slip mugs just as they were stored, intended as a pair and nestled in to each other waiting to get used and stacked just as pots have been for thousands of years.

And for a little something that has absolutely nothing to do with pottery, have a chuckle with Abbott & Costello and Jonah and the Whale

VENTI PLUS

Sometimes when I am in the studio, having a large cup of coffee saves me from going back up to the kitchen coffeepot for more java. Over the years of this practice, people who have visited the studio, especially those in Cleveland were always curious; "can you make me one of those?", thus began the making of large mugs. The illustrated plum blossom mug is a pretty good size, yet fits well in the hand. Made of terra cotta with black, white and coral red slips it holds exactly 24 ounces with room to spare for cream and yes, lots of sugar. Is it possible it is too large for a mug being larger than a Starbuck's venti, possibly, but not if you ask the right coffee aficionados.

My two favorite coffee quips;

"Coffee, if your not shaking you need another cup"

"Drink coffee, do stupid things way faster and with lots more energy."

WHAT'S TO SAY

 

I have had this photo of this Arakawa chawan on my hard drive for some time now and from time to time I go back and study the sheer simplicity of form and surface. I am not sure there is a simpler piece that harbors such a depth of mystery and complexity as this pot. So, what's to say, I'll let the photo do all the talking.

GOSU BLUE MONDAY II

Looking at this lyrical, slip trailed design, I am reminded of Charles Rene Mackintosh and the Arts and Crafts Movement with just a hint of Jugendstil thrown in for good measure, but if you look closely and know the work of the potter, it is definitely all Kawai Kanjiro. Given the well educated and experienced nature of Kawai, he was fully aware of the prevalent movements and historical backdrop of art, craft and specifically pottery; he was an artist of the world who happened to live and work in Japan working within a Japanese sense of design peppered with bits and pieces of what had come before. This wonderful gosu henko shows a brilliant combination of traditional Japanese style married with odds and ends of all of the experiences that Kawai had accumulated with  the areas where the slip trailing has captured and thickened the glaze, creating a rich indigo decoration which is just spectacular and the result of years of creative experience. Though more decorative and representational, it is a masterwork by the artist synonymous with gosu, Kawai Kanjiro.

VARYING OPINIONS

I find it somewhat fascinating and perplexing that a discussion can easily erupt into an argument in no time what so ever. How this came about is that a collector I know through the world wide web sent me a group of photos of a chawan, a rather nice chawan that as the discussion came down to the kodai, I commented I thought it was a bit weak for the form and not as good as some of the potter's best kodai. This observation was not taken well and from there the emails turned in to something of a free for all from his end. I had learned a long time ago that getting in to such a heated discussion via email would never end well and decided not to enflame the situation. Eventually, things calmed down and relations returned to normal. This is certainly not the first time this has happened and I doubt it will be the last.

It would seem that in this age of anonymity and internet relationships that there are several caveats that need apply when discussing "stuff" or rather, at least this is how I see it. First off I think it is important for everyone to realize that just because this is my opinion, it doesn't make it right, it just happens to be how I see things based on the myriad of experiences that make me, me. Secondly the end game does not have to be unconditional agreement, we can agree to disagree and even at times be turned around based on another's viewpoint or "argument". Third and directly related to one and two, we are all entitled to our opinions without being branded heretical for them; in other words, if I have an opinion and flat out say that it is mine and just because of that fact it does not necessary make me right and the other side (the party of the second part) needs to make that same concession. Conceding to the fact that we all have varying opinion does not declare either party a winner or loser, just that we have agreed that we see things in a different light for any variety of reasons. I know this all sounds rather silly but in the time of depersonalized communication I think we all just need to respect each other's viewpoints and for goodness sake, can't we all just get along?

Illustrated is a captivating beishoukuji yohen chawan that in the end, we could both agree was quite nice.

JARS

I was playing around on the computer this morning and decided to take a group of photos of jars I had made and turn it in to a short slideshow. I did this for the excercise but it does give an insight in to the types of jars I make and like. I am especially fond of the ring knob which finds its way into my pottery via an ancient sword pommel and I tend to rely on the umbrella style cap lid that I have been making dating all the way back to my first trip to Japan in 1990/1991.

志野 風景

Illustrated is a Shino chawan with a rather adventurous appearance and quite the story to tell. At first glance the surface almost has a marbled look to it but after further study it is a rich interplay between layers of the feldspathic Shino glaze over a bold red iron slipped surface. The surface paints a landscape that calls to mind tall snow covered mountains or even glaciers melting their way to the foot of the bowl. The iron ring around the mouth frames in the landscape and creates a certain amount of tension between the top and bottom of the Momoyama influenced chawan calling to mind a bold keshiki and an even more dynamic adventure. Ever good chawan should evoke some memory of a time or place in one's life, tell a story (or two) or at the very least create a new experience that the viewer is not likely soon to forget. I think this powerful Aka-Shino chawan by Tamaoki Yasuo does just that and then some.

FRINGE BENEFITS

When I first set up my marketplace on the web, my expectation was to sell some of the pottery I made as well as to find new homes for pots that I had collected to study. From the beginning I realized I couldn't keep every pot that I bought and the thought was to buy pieces that I wanted to learn from and in some other way would leave an impression on me and consequently, my work. What I didn't expect was that fellow collectors, friends and even customers would ask me to try to sell pots that had for any number of reasons, no longer suited the collector or collection. This has undoubtedly been a wonderful fringe benefit of the website. Over the years I usually see a good handful of pots a month that pass through my hands and go on to new collectors, collections and even the occasional private or public collection. It is quite enjoyable to have new pots come by that I can study and as the pieces don't cost me anything, the price is always right.

Illustrated is a rather well fired Iga vase by the late Furutani Michio. This is a pot that was bought from a Japanese dealer and over time, the collector concluded the piece was not quite right for his collection so it came (and went) by me and it was very rewarding to get the opportunity to handle it. The form is quite strong with a slight lean forward to its posture due to the dramatic lobes and intense firing. The color of the liquid ash is rather elegant despite its definite bravado. Quite frankly, this vase has a wide array of effects creating a vivid landscape that is exceptionally well suited to the form; knowing how adept Furutani Michio was at both creating form and their strategic placement in the kiln, how could it have been otherwise.