Based on where you study and
with whom, it is still not easy to predict how a potter will work or where his
evolution take him, even when your master was Mashiko legend, Hamada Shoji. Such
is evidently the case when looking at the Shigaraki influenced, wood fired
pottery of Hashimoto Makoto where a good portion of his work is more like
Sueki ware than modern Mashiko-yaki. Taking its cue from perhaps some tea house
surroundings or a Japanese garden, this stacked stone mizusashi has an ancient
and weathered appearance with hints of the mysterious regarding its true
nature. Fired in a wood fired kiln the surface of the pot has areas of ash
deposits with a tell tale signs of charcoal induced reduction greys across much
of the pot where the two lids, one ceramic and one roiro black urushi create
very different looks for the tea piece. I must confess this is one of the more
intriguing and enigmatic pieces that I have handled in quite some time and a
testament to just how far one can follow their own voice even if their teacher
was Hamada Shoji.
You can see more of this
distinct mizusashi over at my Trocadero marketplace;
http://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1338581/item1338581store.html
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