FADE TO BLACK

I have seen and handled a great number of pots by Kimura Morikazu over the years but this particualr style always captures my attention. Kimura has creatively arranged his glazing in such a way to create bands of various colors at differing levels around the pieces, in this case the rich iron band around the top of the chawan is contrasted against the rest of the bowl which fades to black and the entire piece is covered with oilspots making for a rather attractive and compelling surface. This chawan was made back in the 1980's and was wood fired but like many of his pots, it defies being dated as it has a rather timeless quality that is connected all the way back to the birth of the technique in China to the creative applications of present day potters working with in this oeuvre. I hope the slideshows gives a fuller perspective of the chawan and hope you enjoy the video as much as I enjoyed handling the bowl.