LATITUDE

If I were to characterize my feelings regarding the work and philosophy of Kawai Kanjiro, I think it could be summed up in one word; reverence. Though I am not 100% sure why, his pottery and way of working as well as his philosophy just resonate with me. Along with a few other modern potters, there is little more influential in regards to my work as a potter. As I strive to create my own work using what has come before as more a guideline than a blueprint, I think at its core pottery making is about expressing the connection my pots have to other pots and allowing them a good dose of personal latitude, making them my pots. The illustrated teabowl is a good example, it bears little resemblance to my influences but the genesis can be seen in the work of Kawai as well as a few others, including  numerous anonymous 16th and 17th Japanese potters. The form is based on an old kutsu-gata chawan while the thick slip surface goes back to old Korean hakeme all finished off with a gosu inspired Ao+ glaze that I have been working on for quite some time. It is easy for me to see where the influences come from but when mashed up and assembled in my own unique way, the bowl becomes my own for better or worse.

I made a quick video of the Ao+ slipped teabowl which hopefully will give a sense of the volume and movement of the form and the complexity of the surface right down to the steel blues, blue-greys, gosu and flashes of purple that are locked in the glaze.