DICHOTOMY

A good friend of mine used to send me photos of random things that he would see, things that spoke to him, things that embodied the seeming dichotomy of simplicity and complexity. On one of his random walk-abouts he came across an ovoid rock, tumbled through centuries of geologic upheaval to end up in his pocket and one of his favorite objects. Over the years I have thought about his story and his chance encounter with a stone (which I am now the custodian of) and see that same dichotomy in pots including this Tokoname chawan by Ito Yushi which blend an unpretentious form and surface that at first glance is simple as well. As you look at the surface, the dark, iron rich clay body shows through where the poured slip didn't fully engulf the bowl and then the effects of the salt firing accentuates the nuances of the overall pot. The crackled slip shows hints of a bouquet of colors; silvers, grey, orange, coral and white with hints of the iron clay coming through where surface is fissured. Kumano and Tsukigata notwithstanding, I like a quiet pot, rich in visual and tactile nourishment, a piece that has to be unraveled  where subtlety and nuance are the real main characters of the narrative and if you have the time, there is a lot to see and enjoy in such a simple bowl.

(See a previous post in refernce to Ito Yushi here; https://albedo3studio.blogspot.com/search?q=yushi )