Illustrated
is a wonderful Persian blue shallow bowl (Toruko-ao hachi) on a pedestal foot
by Ningen Kokuho; Kato Takuo. The rim is decorated with flowers and birds while
the center depicts a noble Persian prince astride an Arabian stallion, the
black underglaze has a slight blue hue to it as it peers through the rich
glaze. I have seen a large number of Kato Takuo's toruko-ao pots and each one
has a sense of ageless nobility to them and though heavily decorated, each one
has an appropriateness showing no signs of an heavy handiness. Kato new exactly
how much design/decoration a pot could handle and what was needed to depict his
intent and never wasted a single brush stroke. For Kato Takuo, like so many
other potters, big things are still made up of all the minute details.
.JPG)