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If I had only waited a day or two, I would have posted this photo of the Takahashi Wasaburo vase that recently made its way here. As you can see in this photo, the Sun decided to make an appearance and to my eye brought out the real character (and perhaps the best) of the pot and certainly the truer nature of the glaze combination. The sparkling kannyu surface shines through the iron variegated surface making for a rich and complex portrait that wraps around the entirety of the vase making for a rather exotic spectacle. When I first unboxed this pot I couldn't help but think of all of the wild and imaginative textures and colors of the creatures from the movie AVATAR and though I suspect the actual source for the film was the abundant diversity of nature of all types and form it would not surprise me if somewhere up on a shelf one of the pre-production designers had a handful of pots, among them perhaps one similar to this.

(I hope you don't mind all these detail pictures and sunlight photos but in many respects, capturing pots in varying circumstances and conditions can lead to a better understanding of what a piece actually looks like. How many people have received a pot that just doesn't look like its photo, jeez that sounds like what I keep hearing about internet dating!)

TWO-PARTER

Illustrated is a rather straight forward "falling leaves" vase that is a standard form that I make. This form is not really very complicated and it works well with various decoration on the surface and in this case the random use of the leaves includes inside the trumpet mouth and also on the foot. Perhaps the most complicated thing about this pot is that it is a two-parter, the base and neck are thrown separately in series, perhaps six bases and six necks and then they are matched up and looted together at which time the lugs are attached and each piece goes on for specific surface treatments from carved tebori, abstrakt resist, b&w slip or this treatment of random falling leaves. Perhaps the trickiest aspect of this design is that the slips are put on while the clay is wet and then the sgraffito is done once the clay is close to bone dry; using a large black foam sheet about 12" x 12" x 5" the vase is carefully carved to define the leaves. As I said this form and technique aren't really all that complicated, it just takes the right touch and timing to keep the piece from becoming more a two-parter again.

IT'S A SQUARE DEAL

I put together a rather short slideshow video to give a perspective of what this kaku-kinuta hanaire by Wakao Toshisada looks like in three dimensions. The thrown and squared up vase has a  surface of rather beaded pure white Shino with accents on the face and side of the form with rather vivid facets running from down the piece on the neck and the body. This vase is a rather distinctly simple piece without any extras depending rather on a solid and classic form, a certain blend of subtlety, austerity and strength and excellent proportions  which at the end of the day are all that is necessary to bring in and captivate an audience.

SURFACE TENSION

I have written about the maker of this interesting mallet style vase before, Takahashi Wasaburo who made the very first (real) chawan that my wife and I ever collected. Though in many respects this vase is rather different than our chawan, the depth and complexity of the surface is very similar with a base glaze of a kannyu style seiji that was dipped in a rich, deep, dark red iron glaze and then the potter let the firing and surface tension take over. The application of the two glazes and temperature have conspired to create a rather exotic and visually complex surface that conjures up some alien texture that has the viewer scanning the piece in an effort to make some distinct sense out of the pattern.

In some respects, this pot has an almost camouflaged appearance that takes a determined eye to read the fullness and motion of the form from the contrary tapers of body and neck to the soft, intentional depressed flutes around the piece. Depending on the light source the underlying seiji glaze sparkles creating a rich visual narrative of iron and feldspar presenting a unique and three dimensional landscape with the well thought out form as its canvas. Though this appears to be a rather unusual surface by the potter, I suspect that in order to get to this point in creating a surface, there has to be others, perhaps even a large number of these pots and with any luck, the next one that shows up (especially a chawan) will end up in a small town in central New York State.

IT'S THE TIME OF THE SEASON

As I have mentioned before, because I work in three distinct temperature ranges, I normally work in cycles specific to each though there are times I make stuff and slip it in a bisque and set it aside for another time. In this case, here is a group of "Falling Leaves" decorated pieces that are part of a group that will make their way to southern Connecticut in November along with a similar group of plum blossom pieces  as well. In each case I made a group of bowls and a square tray form that go together which lets me bring a cohesive group that works together and for the larger group it will include tebori, abstrakt resist, plum blossoms, falling leaves and winter berry designs. This illustrated group is freshly decorated and was loaded in to a bisque kiln which I will fire tomorrow. I am trying to keep on top of things to prevent the enviable backlog as long as possible and while firing the kiln tomorrow I will throw in the morning and decorate pots in the afternoon, it is time to plan out my time to its best measure, a skill I am still not all that fond of or good at.

SUNSHINE ON MY SHOULDER

Seemingly basking in the sunlight this vase is one that I had taken photos of some time back and only recently revisited them to build a slideshow video. While originally photographing the pot, I must have snapped a photo of the piece in sunlight and found it in the folder with the rest of the images. This photo gives a whole different  perspective of the interaction between clay, Shino, iron, ash with a cameo by the Sun making for a rather intense look in to the nature of not only the mallet vase but the qualities, varying effects and subtleties of the surface. What I really like about this pot is that at its core it mimics a functional object, the wood mallet and in doing so, blanketed in its own, unique wood grain of sorts, it has become a distinct functional object standing on its own. Through the process of using not only the original clay archetypes, it relies on the weathered and well used wooden origins of which it is quite easy to see in this form even through the earthy, honest surface.

Made by Mino potter, Nakajima Ichiyo (b.1949) of the Ikko-gama in Toki City, his pottery is a mixture of purely functional works, chadogu and pots that push the boundaries of his Momoyama influences. Much of Nakajima's work revolves around Oribe, Shino, Seto-Guro and Ki-Seto of which this Shino mallet vase is a good example in which the potter has skillfully navigated the use of a variety of materials to create a piece that goes well beyond the norm. With the sunshine on the shoulder of the pot a vivid picture is painted of what is possible with a handful of clay, materials, fire and perhaps just a bit of serendipity sprinkled in for good measure.

FLIPPING THE SWITCH

I went into our back bedroom that now doubles as a library, reading room and sometimes storage area and flipped the light switch which turns on a small, 60watt clip-on light and this was the first thing I saw. I had this rather simple and exceptionally useful Bizen sake set by Isezaki Mitsuru here for a short time and the way it is light in certain respects reminds me of a candlelight alcove in some Edo period inn or home. The sparse light is just adequate to highlight the forms of this intentionally mismatched set in forms and firing but as a unit, it works so well and looks very inviting on a shelf or while in use. Over the years i have seen several sets by the potter which included two guinomi and one tokkuri, but this is the first set with three of the former and two of the later which all fit nice and snug in the signed box for all five pieces. Perhaps it is over used but; kampai!

(And for contrast, a similar composition but under far different circumstances.)

GO TELL THE SPARTANS

Over the years, I have created quite a few trailed and carved slipware that represents various classical history and stories, maxims, quotations, etc. stemming from a misspent youth watching movies, reading sci-fi, fantasy and history. Relying on classic slipwares from all the way back to ancient Greece and somewhat more recent age of Thomas Toft, the decorations and design are only limited by one's imagination and enthusiasm. Illustrated is a small bowl part of a series of carved slipware that illustrates individuals or moments in history; this particular one of a noble Spartan warrior on his way to Thermopylae. Simply executed and surrounded in a key-fret border the use of black slip and a rich terra cotta harkens back to the red or black figure pottery of ancient Greek art. Among the other images that I completed are figures and characters like Zeus, a Conquistador, a Landsknecht and several others. These were quite fun to create and with just a few details, I think it brings the images from history to life.

"Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by That here, obedient to their laws, we lie."  Simonides of Ceoas (556BC - 469BC)

IS THE PAST PROLOGUE?

It is really quite a remarkable thing to have a ceramic tradition(s) that runs back thousands of years and it is easy to see why select periods over that course of history become the focal points for modern potters/ ceramic artists as the past is prologue in the shaping of a modern identity. Like several ceramic tradition(s), that of Japan stems from Neolithic times to the present with the Jomon/Yayoi cultures and the medieval and Momoyama eras being poured over and revisited to inexhaustible possibilities, revitalized and reinvented by modern potters, not only in Japan but around the world. All you need do is look back on the early 20th century to see the Bizen, Shigaraki, Shino and many other traditions brought back from the verge of near extinctions by the likes of Arakawa, Rakusai III, Nakazato Muan, Kaneshige Toyo and their contemporaries to see how crucial the earlier medieval and Momoyama eras were and continue to be to Japanese ceramics.

Echizen like many other traditions had their own resurgence starting back at the turn of the 20th century with the aid of the Yamauchi family who did what they could to ensure the "ceramic industry" of the region would survive but in many respects it is the efforts and stewardship of Fujita Juroemon VIII (1922 - 2008) and those that he has taught and trained that has secured the future of this local, long standing tradition. One such potter who has inherited the Echizen tradition and mantle is Nishiura Takeshi. As you can see from this classic Echizen tokkuri it is based on a medieval styled archetype using iron rich indigenous clay, fired in a kiln and manner that goes back centuries to produce this surface that is easily distinguished among the other wood fired traditions of Japan.

You can see more if this Echizen tokkuri on Trocadero by following this link: https://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1409227/CLASSIC-MODERN-ECHIZEN-TOKKURI-BY-NISHIURA-TAKASHI

A GOOD YEAR II

A while back I put up a post in regards to Kowari Tetsuya having a rather good year in 2018 and thought I should share another wonderful Oribe piece by him. This large and powerful sculptural object won the Prime Minister's Award at the Nikkouki Exhibition (2018) and though I haven't seen his competition, it is easy to see from this piece that it is truly a wondrous piece. The beautiful and evocative texture and vivid carving seem to come alive under Kowari's masterful touch and ethereal Oribe glaze/ glazing creating a tremendous sense of vertical movement across the surface. The more that I look at these photos, the more that I see; the piece just exudes a strength and emotion that with any luck brings the viewer along for a rather spirited journey into all the possibilities of Oribe.

GRAVITY AT WORK

Illustrated is a simple B&W slipware covered jar flanked by two cushion vase in the same technique and motif. The jar is exceedingly straight forward in its construction, just thrown and ready to decorate, the two cushion jars start as cylinders, pushed oval, a base applied, the top "crimped" shut and a thrown neck added. Both forms are pretty easy to make and on this particular day, I think I had made four of each with the vases taking the lion's share of time to complete. The pots are first given a coat of black slip and then the vertical lines are the marvel of gravity at work, I just squeeze the slip trailer and let the slip take its course with a few added details to complete the designs. All in all this technique makes for a pleasant decoration and how can I complain about letting gravity do all, well most of the work.

A NEAR PERFECT CHAWAN

Okay to be perfectly honest I need to qualify the title of this post, A NEAR PERFECT CHAWAN, what I really am saying is that this is nearly perfect in relation to what I really enjoy from a chawan, it is personal taste based on what I can get from this type of pot. I think I need to make another disclaimer, this is not a chawan, it is a guinomi but as I have looked at it and studied it, rolled it around in my hands and felt the texture of the surface and clay it is rather apparent to me that this is a guinomi that is actually a more like a miniature chawan. The form, lip, interior and kodai are exactly what I would want from a chawan by the potter, Haneishi Shuji (b.1962) or anyone else for that matter but instead of it being 13cm across it measures in at just about 7.5. As you can see in the photo, the form is casual and has a looseness to it having a sense of motion with a soft, undulating lip and a wet surface composed of a layer of ash with areas of running brown green bidoro and imprints from the shells on which it was fired. I have to admit that this haikaburi Kasama-yaki guinomi isn't exactly a perfect chawan but it certainly makes for a great gem of a guinomi that just begs to be taken for a thorough test drive.

( I should also mention that this is not my first encounter with the works of Haneishi Shuji, I have seen quite a few and handled perhaps a dozen. The last encounter was with a kinuta-hanaire that was very simple in form and had a subtle surface covered in a pale green natural glass coating. I am trying to get to handle it again so that I can take a group of photos to make a slideshow video of the vase and in turn I will make a short video slideshow of this guinomi in the future.)

STRIGIFORMES

When I first saw this vase, I couldn't help but conjure up memories of the original TWIN PEAKS TV show. For those of you that remember the show, you will recall the owl iconography that popped up during the short lived series. That aside, this tall and boldly decorated owl vase shows off some wonderful brushwork for which Suzuki Takuji is quite well known for whether it is under or over the glaze his use of a brush doesn't disappoint. In this case the dark black brushwork and decoration is under a soft, Persian blue style glaze that just adds to the decoration of the two distinct, yet different strigiformes that flank either side of the vase with medallions encircling each and linear designs on each side adding to the vertical feel of the full round body. At nearly 13" tall, this vase has a great presence and gives an insight as skill set of this creative potter. If you are so inclined, you can see more of this vase over on my Trocadero marketplace by following this link;

https://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1409229/PERSIAN-OWL-VASE-BY-SUZUKI-TAKUJI