NO GLAZE REQUIRED

Illustrated is a rather simple Shigaraki mizusashi, the lines are neither fussy or terribly adventurous, but with the few throwing marks around the pot, overall the piece works. The face of the mizusashi is covered in a rather rich blue-green ash sheet with tones of grey mixed in and the rear shows a rich fire color with ash deposited over the top two-thirds of the piece, nestled nicely among the rhythm created by the potter on the wheel. All in all it is rather practical and fitting piece for the tea ceremony but what really peaks my interest is the potter. At first glance there is little to give away regarding the identity of the maker but I have seen this form before so I had an insight into its origins, think of the pot covered in layers of Shino, iron and ash and the link to Tsukigata Nahiko is completed. I have seen shizen-yu wood fired pieces by Tsukigata before though they don't seem to pop up all that often, the occasional guinomi, tokkuri a chawan and now this mizusashi. Though not best known for his unglazed pottery, Tsukigata Nahiko wasn't content with his creation and use of Oni-Shino and this mizusashi is another example of a potter who was interested in what forms looked like across a broad spectrum of both glazed and unglazed surfaces and I would assume he must have been fairly happy with one of his oft used forms in a new set of clothing.

(As inexplicable as this is, it has been three months since I made my last Tsukigata post! I was rather surprised when this was pointed out to me the other day when someone asked me if my interest in his pottery has waned. The answer is certainly not, the truth is time flies but I have rectified the situation.)