SCARRED CLAY

I have an internet friend that knowing my interest in wood fired pottery send me jpegs now and again that he thinks may be of interest. The other day he sent a group and among them was a handful of images of a rather animated Shigaraki haikaburi chawan by Kowari Tetsuya. At first glance the form looks pretty straight forward defined by its brief and concise nature but as you study it you see the naturalistic twist to the form that set the piece in motion and is echoed in the lip and lower lines of the pot, not quite as simple as first thought. The chawan is covered over in a mostly drier natural ash surface with the face being punctuated not only by areas of wad scars and a rich hi-iro but also by several ash drips and a series of punctuated areas where the feldspar has melted out of the surface. I find the bowl eminently practical with its straight sides and solid kodai but there is a sense of wit and playfulness that makes the chawan just that much more interesting. Admittedly, Kowari Tetsuya is one of those potters that I enjoy how he handles the clay, molds it to fit his mind's eye and chooses a firing style that best compliments the pot be they Kohiki, Shino, Oribe or Shigaraki, each is chosen to bring out the most of the form and purpose of the pot.

"Brevity is the soul of wit." William Shakespeare