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.
.JPG)