SILVER & GOLD

What is silver on the outside and gold on the inside, well based on the chawan illustration the answer could in fact be a Banura Shiro chawan. Perhaps it has something to do with growing up with a lacquer artist for a father but this kuro-chawan has silver and gold applied in a manner that is vaguely reminiscent of rubbed negoro or even kanshitsu style lacquer though modified and adapted stylishly to his work. Banura who worked in Iga is well known for his graphic painted pottery which as you think about it many of these pieces seem to spring from lacquer designs applied to simple yet evocative three dimensional forms. This particular chawan reminds me of an Edo period creation going beyond the ordinary chadogu expectations and combining a rugged and purposeful form and glaze with just the right degree of luxury and aristocratic nobility. As you can see in this short video slideshow the silver and gold are not overly bright or thickly applied striking a balance between too much and just the right amount and as you reflect on the work of Banura Shiro you will recognize that he had made a career out of doing just that. Enjoy the slideshow. 

LEFT OVERS

Over time, there always seems to be some pots that just don't end up getting in either the bisque or glaze firings and sometimes both. My last terra cotta bisque/glaze firing ended up being a group of mismatched left overs from slipware to tebori that truth be told didn't make for a very good fit in an effort to use as much space in the kiln as possible and the oldest piece may have dated back to March.  This medium size terra cotta tebori tray form is just one such example and when I took this photo the bulk of the carving had been completed but the few finer details for the birds had not been finished yet. I usually wait until the clay is almost bone dry to add sgraffito decoration with a sharpened pin tool. Though not exactly like the Island of Misfit Toys, I will have to make specific pieces in the coming months to fit with these recently firing pot to keep them from seeming like they are oddballs and one-offs. Maybe 2021 should be the year where I do a better job planning out the firings so that these poor forgotten pots just don't sit around and collect dust.

SEASON'S GREETINGS!

I wanted to wish everyone Season's Greetings, Happy Holidays, a very happy new year and the annual airing of the grievances during the Festivus for the rest of Us. We are also hoping that 2021 is "a far, far better year than has ever come before". Chocolate holiday truffles accompanying a shinsha mizusashi by Nakajima Hitoshi which seems festive enough in my book.

GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PAST

Illustrated is a plate, a ghost of Christmas past as it were and a piece we use from time to time, though carefully especially around various Holidays. This was a gift from my wife back in the earliest days of the internet, purchased from Robert Yellin close to when he first appeared on Trocadero, a virtual marketplace. Mindy picked this piece for me for two reasons, first off look at the clear emerald ash glaze across the surface which accentuates the vivid texture, the second reason which pools here and there and in the crevices of the clay. The box is simply signed HAIYU HACHI, YOSHIAKI  (SHUMEI) and always makes the contents of the piece look just a bit nicer than they appear. Despite the texture this ash glazed plate is rather practical, a good size for two people, easy to use and as the covered surface peeks out from whatever it may hold, it just makes the whole experience that much more satisfying especially when it involves smoked salmon, dill mayonnaise, capers and thinly sliced onion.

ECB TS8

This faceted on the wheel teabowl was yet another piece made out of an experimental clay body that I was messing about with, this was the last piece from the batch. This bowl was thrown and quickly faceted using a sharp splinter of fire wood that was hanging around and has served as a rather useful if impromptu clay tool. Though this looks quite brown in the left photo, it is a greener tone in natural light (as seen on the right) and all the grog inclusions and shelves caused by the quick faceting add quite a bit to the surface making for a much more animated and interesting visual. I ran out of this clay rather quickly throwing teabowls and a couple of small covered pieces once the test cups came out of the glaze kiln and need to get motivated to make up more of this clay body which will end up with the ominous sounding designation; ECB TS8.

ONI-SHINO REVEAL

If I had known that this recent storm was going to affect our area as much as it has I would have asked the sender of this pot to hang on just a couple more days. Though I had seen a couple of so-so photos (sorry B.) I was waiting for the Oni-Shino reveal as I was aware it was also packed in its own blue suit. As fate would have it, it arrived safe and sound and this is the first photo of the piece that I have taken besides those of the outside box and interior packing. All decked out in its very own custom shifuku, this Oni-Shino vase clearly announces its surface of thick, crackled feldspar Shino with areas of iron pouring out small gaps all coated in a thin sheen of natural wood ash for the intense firing. There is no mistaking the works of Tsukigata Nahiko from those influenced by his pottery in his own day well into the 21st century. As the saying goes, often imitated but rarely duplicated I am constantly amazed that the combination of simple feldspar, iron and natural wood ash make for such a unique and idiosyncratic surface in the hands of Tsukigata which seemingly can not be truly duplicated. Adding to the fine coat of green ash is a nice ring of crustier ash around the mouth and a bit more for good measure of the face of the piece. The pot, like the cat is of course now out of the bag as it were and fully photographed and I will post an overall photo of this rather unique hanaire at some point in the near future.

AKA-CHAWAN

I had this "AKA-CHAWAN" pass through here on its way to its new home a while back and honestly I rarely pass up the opportunity to handle the work of Konishi Heinai II if I can help it. Konishi is equally adept at making Raku style pottery and Iga-yaki and despite the box simply reading, red chawan this is very much Raku style pottery. I really admire the large tapering, vertical form with wonderfully tactile spatula work with a surface that is occasionally punctuated by black carburized spots making their way through the glaze all the while perched on a small yet stable kodai. Though the bowl has a well worked form and surface there is just enough curve and texture to make for a rather seductive chawan that infuses certain elements from the work of Koetsu and Chojiro while like a great chef, folding in the right characteristics and nuances of the modern age in which this bowl was produced. I won't go so far as to say this is a perfect Raku chawan but I'll let the viewer decide how far to go in the admiration of Konishi's Raku creations.

SPILLWAYS

Here is a quite detail shot of a recent impasto slip style teabowl glazed up in Oribe, iron and a quiet sheen of black glaze. The diagonal channels make for excellent spillways on each plain of this squared up bowl adding a nice sense of movement to the piece as well as a great deal of visual and dimensional texture. I have to admit, I like not knowing exactly what the results will be using this three glaze combo with the latest Oribe as the base to work from; various shades of green, amber, brown and black droozy areas crop up along with these ashy looking trails with trails of various colors within them as well. Now I do realize this is in no way rocket science but I like the alchemy feel to the process where the amounts and combinations change as much with a puff of breath* as they do with anything else. (* I am using an atomizer as a spray gun to apply the two or three overglazes.)

HAGOROMO GUINOMI

I have had this short video slideshow on the hard drive for some time and thought it was as good a day as any to put it up on Youtube and my blog. This yuteki style, partridge feather guinomi was made by veteran iron glaze specialist Kimura Morikazu and shows off just one of the myriad of styles and surfaces that he mastered along his long career which started out in Kyoto before he moved off to Echizen. This nice yuteki-temmoku guinomi has a nice array of features and effects that creates a rich tapestry to enjoy and bringing to mind the hagoromo, the feathered cloak. I hope this slideshow as short as it is helps fill in the blanks of the form, surface and subtleties of this guinomi by Kimura Morikazu and is the next best thing to having in hand.

TRANSPACIFIC VOYAGE

Given the current state of affairs and the dramatic increase in getting pots from Japan to the US I had decided early on to try my hand at getting a pot or pots shipped by surface, seamail, a practice I have been using for printed materials for quite some time. Illustrated is the very first attempt at doing so which arrived after what seemed like an eternity but in absolutely great shape from pot, wood box and even the other cardboard box. Granted this was packed rather well but I gave the odds for at about 25% which was oddly enough how this pot was picked as a $10 plus $26 Japan Post seamail bill and when it arrived I was quite pleased all things considered.

This haikaburi Shigaraki uzukumaru tsubo which is just a little over 9" tall was made by Shimizu Hiroyuki and shows off a pleasing enough form with a rather nice firing with a rather active surface which give the pot that spark that catches the eye. During the firing the pot apparently fused to a shelf and when removed a small area came off the pot which was then filled and decorated in gold which adds a rather old, medieval feel to the pot. I really enjoy the directional ash caused by the velocity (and ferocity) of the firing which triggers the imagination to think of Ando Hiroshige's "Sudden Shower" woodblock print. Perhaps another intriguing feature of this pot is that the signed box also has a painted image (see inset) of the vase in use which adds a certain amount of appeal to the package. All in all this was an excellent test subject for the ardors of Transpacific voyage and low cost method of shipping for pieces that it would seem can not only make the journey but are worth the wait.

NOTHING TO SEE HERE

A recent email exchange came at precisely the right moment a short while back with two extra (?) squared teabowls sitting ready to be tooled and addressed one way or another. The conversation moved me to decorate the bowls both with segmented planes in which the stoneware had the kanji MU incised through to the clay and the porcelain one would have red overglaze enamel painted after the piece was glaze fired. This particular video slideshow follows the inspiration and progression of the stoneware bowl from thrown and incised, black slip segments applied, clear glazed and the finished piece. As you can see, there is "nothing (MU) to see here" across the segments around the teabowl alternating with the dark black areas and at the end of the day, this was enjoyable to document and make. Thanks for nothing! 

OSC

The box of this chawan clearly and succinctly reads; ONI-SHINO CHAWAN and though not totally alien to this potter, this style is a bit less well known than his various Shino, Oribe and haiyu glazed pots. The potter is Hayashi Shotaro and what normally springs to mind is the thickly glazed Shino pots of various incarnations from pure white, crimson reds to blue based feldspar surface and let's not forget the soft and evocative pastels of his rich Manyosai haiyu glazes. This Oni-Shino chawan shows vivid areas of semi-translucent crackle Shino with rich areas of iron effervescing through to the surface creating a scene out of some icy world envisioned only in our minds all layered and painted on to a canvas that has seductive curves and a posture defined with strength and functional determination.

Though in no way an anomaly I think I am attracted to this chawan and surface because there is a uniqueness to it, it fits well within Hayashi Shotaro's body of work while being obviously different than the bulk of his Shino chawan like one of those teachable moments for days gone by where "one of these things is not like the other". I will admit, I am drawn to the eccentric, the outsiders, those that walk a distinctly different path and it is easy to see where this Oni-Shino chawan is certainly not like the others.

GDD

I remember when Ishii Takahiro first burst on the scene having spent his apprenticeship with Kakurezaki Ryuichi, Ishii's palette was diverse but for me this Oribe, this vivid glaze caught my eye. As you can see in the picture there is a clarity and boldness to Ishii Takahiro's work, the Oribe glaze itself is bold and unapologetic as it interacts with the texture and color of the bare clay that has these wonderful orange flashed boundaries between clay and glaze. There is also a boldness to the form, just outside of the norm but well within the concept of the pot and its function for tea ceremony and beyond. The pot is accentuated by the expanded foot and lip where the creative, asymmetrical lid sits inadvertently decorated by wad scars and the crisp geometry of the knob and lugs all which showcase thick blue-green glaze or the gravity defying drip (gdd) atop the spire of the piece. I think that though it would be easy to say this is a simple pot with modern overtures the truth is that the decisions made and there are many to produce such a pot are quite a bit more complex than meets the eye though should we expect anything less from someone who lived, studied, learned and worked alongside one of Bizen's great modern masters? I just don't think so.

DOUBLE TAKE

Quite a while back I made a video of a Oribe kushime style teabowl that I had made and posted it up on Youtube. This was not a video slideshow but rather a video of the teabowl in motion on a rather cheap turntable and as I looked at it this weekend I was rather crushed at how poorly it actually captured the real nature of the bowl. In the video the bowl doesn't really want to stay in crisp focus for the majority of the duration and the color, texture and surface are washed out and not terribly interesting. I am not sure when I turned away from making this type of video but I could see where this presentation would be the nail in the coffin.

This past weekend as I was cleaning up and putting things away I actually realized that I still had this teabowl, loosely, very loosely based on a Momoyama piece I had handled, sitting up on a dusty shelf and decided to rephotograph the piece in a way that would bring out the character and characteristics of the piece. In this photo the use of Oribe and Iron show up quite nicely with a wide array of color and texture accentuated by the kushime combing and areas where the infused glazes are using the channels as diagonal speedways adding movement to the teabowl. I know it would seem that I already covered this bowl in its video debut but I thought since it was just hanging about that it deserved a double take, a shot at putting its best foot forward and hopefully this time I have succeeded in that task.

NIHONGA-YAKI

I am a huge fan of modern Japanese painting, the Nihongo masters like Higashiyama Kai and Hirayama Ikuo rate high on my list as I am sure they do for most lovers of the idiom. That being said, perhaps it is easy to see why I find this cover box so intriguing, the Nihongo inspiration is rather unmistakable, it is like looking through a densely packed forest of bamboo with the wonderful added benefit of function. This vivid and meticulously decorated hexagonal futamono covered box was made and painted by Oda Aya (?) and clearly shows a mastery of both clay and painting together with a keen sense of space to create this evocative and naturalistic piece. I love how the coppery background comes through all of the detailed stalks of bamboo creating such a sense of movement that if you concentrate you can almost hear the sound of the rustling of leaves in the distance. As I said, I really love Nihonga painting and could it get any better than to be so incredibly rendered on a three dimensional ceramic form? The obvious response, I just don't think so.

LINE DRAWING

This short video slideshow is another one of the older videos I built quite a while back using my first digital camera and what by comparison is now considered stone age software. Unfortunately I can re-photograph this chawan and these pictures will have to do to give the best insight in to this early Kojima Kenji Iga chawan. What is immediately apparent is that this chawan was well fired and despite the nice coating of ash on the face the incised archaic style line drawing pops right out. I have seen this style of archaic inspired decoration on a number of Kojima's pieces including a few large henko and tsubo that creates movement and visual curiosity to the surface. I apologize for the less than stellar quality of the video slideshow but still think it conveys a broader sense of this Iga chawan than a single static photo would. Enjoy.

NEXT

I am not sure if I had used this photo or one of the overall before but I was puttering around the studio and the light was just right and I was reminded of the neat glaze effects that occurred on the surface of this shallow wall bowl. Made perhaps at the beginning of last year in a series, I had hung this bowl up on the wall as an extra to an order and it has been there ever since. As you can see the area of temmoku is riddled with what would almost pass for oil spotting effect that is flanked with a tortoise style appearance across the rest of the piece. As you probably guess this is not a planned outcome but in some cases where the temmoku glaze goes on a bit thick it creates this texture when the medieval green is placed over it. As I mentioned this morning the sun caught this piece just right and I was immediately reminded; why is it I haven't made any of these pieces in a while?

OPTICAL ILLUSION II

I put up a post  recently entitled; OPTICAL ILLUSION about the effect that is present as you look at this Miura Shurei tsubo and thought to put up an overall photo to show off the form and scale of the piece. I will concede that this is probably not the best photo of this large tsubo but given the highly reflective and refractive surface this was about as good as I could do given the time that I had with the pot. Clearly influenced by old Chinese pottery and glazes this robust vase seems inflated to capacity with a palpable volume trapped within the form yet finished off with a rather delicate neck and mouth that is broken up by the addition of three strategically placed interruptions in the lip looking like a flower from various viewpoints. Though the photo doesn't capture the glaze surface at its best it is easy to see the randomized array of color and micro-texture which is all moving down the pot in hare's fur style yet creating optical illusions about the piece. All in all a rather classic pot by Miura Shurei a true master of yohen and kamahen style pottery.

PACKAGE DEAL

There is a certain degree of exoticism regarding the careful packaging of Japanese art object for storage as well as their presentation and display. Case in point is this set of bags for a rather special luster chaire by Kato Takuo, complete with three compartment signed wood box and outer lacquered storage box. The front purple bag is padded and holds the chaire while in normal storage, the bags to the left and right are the two bags that are used during tea ceremony, chosen to best fit the attitude and specifics of the ceremony. In the rear is the large bag for the very nice wood storage container that the bagged chaire rests in while in the signed wood box. The lathe turned wood container reminds me a lot of a natsume at list in form and may be turned out of kurogaki wood though I am not sure, I will post up a picture of it in a future post. 

As I look on the total package deal involved with this single and diminutive chaire I can't help but be reminded of the 1975 book that had a profound influence on me, HOW TO WRAP FIVE EGGS by Oka Hideyuki which still sits proudly on my shelf next to me as I type this though quite honestly, quite thumb worn, annotated and chocked full of small bookmarks with even more notes and questions. I think you would have to admit that little comes close to this type of presentation despite the fact that in this particular case Kato Takuo has gone the extra mile and then some.

PEANUT BUTTER SLIP

Illustrated is a bowl from a week ago, now almost bone dry with a soft impasto style slip application. Normally I would have preferred a slightly more firm slip but this is what I had on hand so it had to do despite being the softest used for the impasto technique. The consistency of this slip was about that of stirred up, all-natural peanut butter where I normally use something more akin to processed peanut butter, noticing an analogy trend here? Despite the consistency I was still able to create rather nice, deep diagonal channels around the thrown round and squared up teabowl that I think compliment the form and with any luck should activate quite nicely with my new Oribe glaze combos. I have to admit that I love the slip and clay at this stage, it reminds me of a warm cake just recently frosted in some exotic surface where the frosting is still in a semi-liquid like state, yes everything comes back to baked goods, could it be any other way?

RYUSEN-MON

Ryusen-mon, curving lines design is the description written on the box of the large seihakuji vase by Kubota Yasuyoshi. Though this seductive and elegant porcelain vase is coated in a light blue glaze it is hard to tell in my photos but the diaphanous, ethereal ribbons can be clearly seen building varying amounts of glaze to create a rather winter like landscape that literally dances across the surface of this icy pot. A similar but much larger tsubo in this ryusen-mon design was exhibited at the Nihon Kogei-ten (16) in 2001 and won the Mainichi Shinbun Award and having seen the large piece and this piece I can certainly understand why. I think I could go on waxing poetic and slinging hyperbole regarding this hanaire but hopefully the photo says all that is really needed.

OPTICAL ILLUSION

I think I have mentioned my first contact with this potter, Miura Shurei all the way back during the traveling Kikuchi Collection exhibition where on display was a set of very pretty and very functional bowls. The surfaces on the bowls were captivating and created a rather unique effect that defied what one could actually see if you concentrated enough. This detail shot is from a large, fat, rounded tsubo of distinctly Chinese taste in which a similar effect occurs, basically it is an optical illusion in which as you look at the round and full belly of the pot the glaze seems to create an unending series of circular designs. In actuality the glaze is all running at quite a clip down the pot, after all, gravity is a law we must all contend with whether we like it or not. I will admit as far as illusions go, it is quite a nice one and really gives the pot a variety of looks especially in differing light from an almost shimmery gun metal to this effervescent surface filled with a near rainbow of color and texture. I know I say this about way too many potters but I was very pleased with my encounter with this pot and look forward to my next meeting with the work of Miura Shurei.

MONDAY, MONDAY

Today was another one of those Mondays, since this week is really kind of booked up with stuff other than working in the studio, I just decided to go down and give myself 15 minutes to make something "different". I had already decided to make something vertical and what sprung to mind was a bottle shape which ended up just over 18" tall and now came the playtime. Using two boards, I flattened out the bottle and then used a combing tool, I made a floral design that was punctuated with the end of another tool at hand to create an abstract blossom or bud style design. My initial intention was to create a faceted squared style foot but after looking at it for a bit I just wasn't entirely convinced, cut it open to check the throwing and then wedged it back up where it now resides once again as a ready to use ball of clay for future and perhaps more planned out use. The truth is that knowing my off schedule this week, it just felt good to throw something, just anything.

OBJECT

This photo is one of the many that I took during my stay in Japan back in the early 90s. When I first arrived at the home and studio of Kohyama Yasuhisa he was busy selecting and then packing pieces for his upcoming exhibition that was being held in The Netherlands though this piece was not one of them if I remember correctly as this one was for a Takashimiya exhibit. This large and evocative vase form, object was in the formal greeting room at Kohyama's home with traditional alcove and tatami mat floors with this piece and another in the corner filled with fresh cut flowers (I have the picture of that as well somewhere). I was immediately taken by this elemental and even archaic quality of this vessel which had a dazzling but thin coat of green ash melted across the surface causing it to sparkle and luminesce  as you moved around it. Though a bit hard to see in the photo there is incised fine line decoration on the surface on the front and back shields of the vase that just make it look like something from the long distant past now covered in a thin coating of ice. My stay at Kohyama's was a grand experience and being around pots like this certainly made the stay all the richer.

TOO MUCH SALT

Every time I turn around all I hear is that there is too much salt in our diets but as I look at this en-yu, salt fired chawan it is clear that there is just the right amount on this surface. Made by Kyoto potter, Iwabuchi Shigeya this chawan has nearly the ideal surface among his works with plenty of texture, salt and a wonderful blush that adds a degree of distinction to the piece. The throwing has created a sense of movement, of natural rhythm to the bowl which is seated comfortably on a  bamboo node style foot that adds that sense of lift that beckons to be picked up and used.  I enjoy my encounters with Iwabuchi's work, they are imbued with practicality balanced with beauty, they are one and all stewards of the broad Kyoto aesthetic where how one looks and how one performs are the top priorities.

MOSTLY SQUARE

Illustrated is a pair of mostly square terra cotta teabowls that were thrown and altered and then decorated with X and Os a few weeks back. This is the finished product where as you can see, they are mostly square with the belly of each plane being just slightly convex which adds to the volume of each bowl. Each side of the bowl is dominated by a large X or O in black and white making for a simple but bold design. There are several decorative devices that keep showing up in my work, perhaps because they are primal and/ or elemental in nature like the X & O, the rain pattern, spirals, the verses and the "landscapeman", each has a place on various forms across temperature ranges, choice of clay and surfaces. 

As for these particular bowls, I like altering the thrown form and using a design device that I have some comfort with makes the process just go that much smoother. As an obvious side note, there are times that I decide to just wing it, go with the very first, or last thing that enters my mind and in 98.99% of the time I feel like I have wasted the clay, chemicals, energy and time it took to make the piece and process it along. This is not to say that trying new things and testing isn't a good thing but rather best to test designs and decoration first on paper and then on things that are much less labor intensive to make, think flat square slabs.

WHILE I WAS THERE

During my time in Japan working at Kohyama Yasuhisa's studio in the early 90s I figured while I was there and had a day to spare (Kohyama was at a wedding) that I would make a trek in to Kyoto, stopping at a number of galleries, antique places and a few book stores. At one bookstore I found this book which was published in 1991 and in it was a contemporary set by Kohyama Yasuhisa, a kamo-tokkuri and guinomi and since I was leafing through the it the other day, I took a quick snap and decided to post it.

This is a classic example of one of Kohyama's highly animated and lively tokkuri with a rich array of ash effects creating three distinct zones of color and texture on the face of the pot accompanied by a simple guinomi with an inviting posture and spirited form. One aspect of this photo captures the wonderful shadowed area at the base of each piece, in many respects it almost appears like the pots are hovering, detached from the surface they are resting on. Despite the simplicity of these two pieces both tokkuri and guinomi show a well defined use of the details making for a rather unique and conscious pot based on years of experience, trial and error and a unique understanding of the Shigaraki tradition, its materials and firing to created objects formed and even sliced from the earth.

DNA

The box that accompanies this chawan is simply marked, SHINO CHAWAN which in truth is a faithful description that leaves out some of the details that one can clearly see with just a simple glance. Thrown out of a fine clay this bowl has that classic Shino sense to it, part Momoyama and part modern in its DNA but it is also clearly recognizable as a chawan by Tsukigata Nahiko. Though I see those influences, including a dash of Arakawa Toyozo in the shape, posture and lip, I also clearly see that this is a near textbook "plain" Shino chawan by Tsukigata. 

Making wonderful use of the marriage of shape and surface this chawan was carefully manipulated to create a more dramatic effect and just the right amount of movement that brings a pot to life. I find this chawan pleasing to the eye and hand with a soft, blushed color that in some respects reminds me of a winter trying to hang on while the spring is in a hurry to take over. It is hard not to enjoy the narratives that Tsukigata paints on the surface of his pots substituting clay, glaze and fire for oils and canvas, either way, it paints a rich portrait that brings more depth of meaning to such a simple teabowl.

BLUE BOWL

There are a number of forms, surfaces and ideas that I revisit from time to time, sometimes I am asked to revisit them and other times something triggers it. For a number of years I made these lobed Persian blue and gold luster bowls for various holiday sales and just recently I ran in to a photo of one and decided to make a couple. The execution is simple enough, thrown out of terra cotta the lip is both cut and then pulled to create the lobes and once done the bowls are covered in a black slip and then the white is added. The bowls are then bisqued, glazed and fired after which I apply the gold luster and fire them one last time, far more effort than difficulty. As you may be able to see the inside of the bowl is a deep, dark, rich surface where in the very bottom pools a small spiral of Persian blue because of the thickness adding just enough to add a simple touch to the interior. I only made a couple of these bowls and in truth rarely make that many, the time investment is certainly more than most pieces and the gold luster just keeps getting more and more expensive while the bowl prices do not. I had the urge and made the bowls, now I'll just move along.

WARMING UP

I am not sure when I took this photo but it has been hanging around long enough. This classical, Chinese influenced and cool blue koro was made by Suzuki Sansei and just seems to be warming up for either its intended function or just to be admired. The wonderful, double refractive celadon pools in the channels of the top and bottom of the koro body and breaks as if on cue on the shoulder creating a wide array of points of interest that also act to animate and define the form. In many respects there isn't a ton going on here in terms of form and glazing but due to the special nature of the glaze, the piece just comes to life and it is clear that any bell and whistles added to the pot would have been for naught. Though I am a huge fan of Suzuki Sansei's more opaque seihakuji glaze I am sure I can find my way to accepting this glaze and all that goes along with it as well.

TAMBA FUTAMONO

This is certainly an older and not great photo of a rather nice Tamba box that I got to take a look at quite a while back. This is my one and only photo of this covered box form by Nishibata Tadashi though it is only about 70 miles away and is in need of being revisited. Made in the late 1990s this box is of classic form, decoration and styling of a number of pieces that he made that at varying times evoke just smallest recollection of the paintings of some abstract expressionists. The robust hexagonal form just exudes power and the wonderfully puffed up top just conveys volume and a certain amount of dramatic tension that both bold intension and subtle details turn the ordinary in to the exceptional. I am also quite amazed at what would in description seem to imply a heavy form is in point of fact, strong yet light in terms of its visual presence, no easy feat to achieve. Though in many respects in stark contrast to much of Nishibata Tadashi's traditional pottery this piece easily fits within his body of work and his keen attention to the future of modern Tamba.

A "B" FOR EFFORT

This pair of dark Oribe ewers came out of a firing about two months ago and are a result of perhaps too much spare time on my hands. Though I have made somewhat larger versions of this basic form, I decided to throw the pieces parts and see what this would look like and how it may perform on a smaller scale; it's not exactly rocket science but I wanted to keep the proportions about the same as the larger pieces. After the pieces were assembled, both from a single cylinder, I applied and combed a thick slip around the forms to articulate it somewhat. As for the glazing they were both glazed in an Oribe and then had a layer of a black wash that I use added to the spouts, top of the pots and around the base the alter the way the overall surface would fire. 

Both survived and didn't stick to the protective shelf pieces they were fired on (!) and once cool I gave them both the pour test. In truth, I think I would give them a solid B for their performance as due to the small aperture where the spout meets the body of the ewer, the air exchange is a bit restricted leading to some "glugging" to occur unless the pour was held just right and done slowly. I would love to say they both got an A+ but they do function, fit well in the hand and look okay in the process. What's next, maybe triangular of square ewers, I guess it depends on the day and the music!

CLASSIC TAMBA

A while back I had a number of intermittent opportunities to takes some photos while still getting work done in the studio and around the yard and house. I had this particular Tamba mizusashi on the shelves and as luck would have the timing of both the sun and my spare moment produced one half of this photo collage and in the interest of full disclosure, I am also showing a more traditional picture to give a comprehensive idea of form and surface . As the titles implies this is a rather classic mizusashi by one of the pioneers of the modern Tamba tradition, Nishibata (or Nishihata if you prefer) Sueharu which is as simple as it gets in form, lid and firing. despite the simple execution this exemplary firing has produced a bold, animated and rather exciting surface focusing on the vertical gravity of the running ash. The rich, medieval narrative painted by fire in ash makes for a rather elemental, even primal pot, a pot that caters to function but doesn't lack in the eye appeal either in either light source. In some respects by studying this pot and surface it is abundantly clear where Nishibata Tadashi and his son Daibi, now deceased , have learned a lesson or two from Sueharu, like father, like son (and grandson).

THREE YEARS BUT WHO'S COUNTING

I first mentioned this chawan in a post back in November 2017 at which point I thought I was close to getting a slideshow video of the chawan put together but the file is still on the computer and I am not much closer to getting it done after all it is only three years but who's counting. The original post was about how well the teabowl was back and double boxed though to a certain degree maybe it was over packed, check for yourself; https://albedo3studio.blogspot.com/2017/09/a.html   

 As for the chawan, it was made by Koyama Naohiko, son of Koyama Kiyoko and though on the small side it packs quite a visual punch. Obviously well fired and in a rather desirable spot in the kiln, the velocity and ferocity (no not twins from P&TNPG) is written like a good novel across the surface of the bowl with the ash frozen in motion and culminating in a near flawless emerald gen-like drip on the reverse (see detail). The chawan was fired on its side at an angle as indicated by the shell scars which add volumes to the surface. I am hoping it doesn't take me another few years to get a slideshow video made for this Koyama chawan as I think it is worth seeing to get the fullest picture of the piece, maybe in a couple of weeks.

TC SQUARED

I had to throw a handful of terra cotta pieces last week so while I was at it, why not make a few bowls to square up which was done quick and dirty. The basic idea was that I will apply several surfaces of slip to them, bisque, decorate them, bisque again and then clear glaze them for the finish. While I was in the studio this morning, working on a few other things and getting ready to slip them it occurred to me just how terrible the surfaces look at this point in the making process and I certainly hope they look better once completed (!). The lines are pretty crisp and all the other exterior marks will get covered over and hidden with slip but this point of the process in terra cotta, stoneware and porcelain always leaves me feeling a bit depressed. Now they are slipped and I need to get them dry before I just give up on them and set them in the corner somewhere and get on with the stuff I actually need to get made and finished.

QUIET BOWL

I had this simple, quiet Shino chawan here for a while and have to admit, though it doesn't scream its presence there is a comfortable, contemplative atmosphere related to the bowl. As I think back on the time spent with the teabowl it was always easy to envision it in use, how it presented itself in rest and how it felt in the hand, there is nothing challenging about the form, surface or foot but the backdrop is surely use. I built this short video slideshow to give a better insight in to this Arimoto Kugen chawan from as many angles as possible which hopefully shares my impressions of the chawan despite the chawan not being not filled with tea on your table.

F.C.E.

I'll be perfectly honest and say that I really don't know a lot about the potter who made this sweet Ki-Seto guinomi but when I first saw it, the reaction was visceral. Made by Iwatsuki Takemitsu (b.1949) this guinomi is part of a body of work mostly influenced by Momoyama pottery with a specialty in Ki-seto where he has spent 30 years experimenting with the right combination of clay, ash and firing techniques to try to reproduce a surface that he has set in his mind's eye. As for this guinomi it has that wonderful quality of at first appearing like a miniature chawan, the great posture and form are complimented by the sparse use of Ki-Seto glaze over incised decoration with copper accents. Even in this static photo, the pot is in motion with the variety of alterations to the thrown form aiding in this production from undulating lip, pinched and altered body and the accentuated lines around the waist and at the base create this perpetual motion. Though this guinomi is not made by one of the great Ki-Seto masters  if Iwatsuki was after capturing the character, playfulness and spirit of the Momoyama antecedents, he has done a pretty good job, definitely a first class effort.

K-O TESTING

Illustrated is the interior of a recent teabowl that I got out of the kiln, the clay was a small test batch but the glazes are ones I have been combining for a few months now. The glaze combination is what I am referring to as Kuro-Oribe because of the high iron content and the fact that it creates a rather dark surface overall. I have been pleased with the effects that I have been getting where a blend of glaze thickness and gravity have their way with the final look of the piece more than my experience as the glaze combo is still a bit new. The one thing I can say is that the use of this combo has created a non-stop sense of movement as it creates a droozy, tendril like effect running down the surface which I am partial to, in fact I am a huge fan of glazes and surfaces that move a lot and perhaps this is why I like wood fired pieces so much. I am thinking about adding a bit more iron, a splash of cobalt and manganese to this glaze and see where it goes from there, if anything interesting happens, I'll post up the result (if it is an utter disaster, perhaps I just won't mention that part).

HANA-ZU

Illustrated is a rather traditional and formal chawan made with mingei ideals in mind created for a single purpose while serving two intermingled aspirations, function and beauty. It is easy to say that because the students are so influenced by their master, Kawai Kanjiro that each of these potters just blends together elements of the teacher but I think it is safer to say that what was learned has been filtered through a lens of a differing experience and as such, each adds unique touches to the Kawai-mon. I think you can clearly see that in this chawan that has a form that relies on the archetype but there are nuances that make for a distinct style that is easy to separate from master and student. This chawan shows the maturity of Kawai Takeichi working within a more formal idiom and using decoration that relies on a blend of traditional Japanese design and elements he learned during his years at the studio and kiln of his master. I think since to most people it is easy to see the differences between Kawai Kanjiro and his nephew that it is also easy to say that though influenced, pieces like this clearly show the styles of a potter who has made his way within a new tradition but not in the shadow of its originator.

ONE PING ONLY

I am always reminded in the digital age that you are always just one mouse click away from stumbling on to some pot that is of interest, just one ping only. That is exactly what happened a couple months back when I was pursuing the ubiquitous auction site and came across this handsome fellow complete with signed box, cloth and exhibition flyer. As you can see from the composite photo, the pot is a rather large Oni-Iga yunomi by Tsukigata Nahiko made in or around 1992 according to the enclosed bio. The dark surface is covered in various effects including these rich tendrils of shimmering iron crystals that just add depth and movement to the yunomi that is completed with deep throwing rings around the base which also provide for a nice textural grip. The lip and the foot show classic Tsukigata attributes and the yunomi is finished off with his impressed "moon" seal which also adds a rather nice detail to the simple, utilitarian pot meant as much for contemplation as it is daily use. I can't see getting tired with a yunomi like this on the desk as I surf about looking for another for my wife, after all, this one is all mine.

ONE POUND OF CLAY AND 48"

First thing this Monday morning I am working on making a group of (UFO) serving bowls for an order which ties in well with some other commissions that need to be completed. Add to this that I am working on the second stage testing of a new glaze where I use small test cups to see how things work beyond  test pods and small slabs. These particular bowls are 4.5lb and measure about 16" across which should end up at about 14" when glazed and fired. The currently planning is to glaze a couple of these bowl in my saffron and a couple in temmoku and iron red, both making for rather practical and function surfaces. As for the bowl shape itself, I am sure it has been around for quite some time but honestly, I first started making this form at CSU  literally the very next day after watching EARTH VS THE FLYING SUACERS (1956). I think it is really apparent  by now that I am a product of TV (movies and music) and given enough time and all this "nonsense" in my head will find its way in to my work, one way or another.

F&F

Illustrated is a rather attractive and  henko by Kimura Mitsuru, son-in-law of Kimura Ichiro and inheritor of the distinct  Mashiko tradition established by Hamada Shoji. This robust form has a rich surface that focuses on and highlights the wax resist design of foliage with a soft, soothing green additions to the decoration. As with many (most?) of the Hamada and Kawai school potters, this henko is both a great use of design and form, it is basic simplicity which presents a great surface for glazes and decoration yet even unadorned the lines and scale are perfect for everyday use in the home, the purpose is not overlooked in favor of simply pleasing the eye. 

Basing his work on that of his father, Kimura Mitsuru makes a wide array of pots that borrow design elements and other nuances from Kimura Ichiro but as you look at the work, it is clear that was not their origin though like Hamada and Ichiro alike, the work is a distinct blend of form and function. I really like the cut of this henko, the bones of the piece are seductive and the rich visual appeal of the glaze and decoration simply clinch the deal, all in all a very alluring henko no matter where it was made.

E+E+P=D 2

I had posted up a detail shot of this wonky Shino mizusashi by Suzuki Goro a while back and finally got around to cleaning up some of the pictures so i thought I would post up this overall shot of the piece. I find the way that Suzuki crafted the base to be narrower than the upper most section of the pot to be playful and courageous after all would the bottom support the top as physics has its way in the making, drying and firing?  As you can see the years of experience allow Suzuki Goro quite a bit of latitude when it comes to making pottery, where other forms might fail, a careful understanding and insight into his clay and firing prevails and forms that he is so well known for intrigue viewers and potters alike. I will admit this form though casual and carefree is not nearly as adventurous as some of his pieces but it does have its wonky and out of control moments and the weighty top adds a certain amount of drama that the pot is all the better for processing.

SMALL BATCH

Given the current state of affairs I have had some extra time to work on ideas, test "stuff" and generally just get in trouble. In the past couple of months I have been playing with three new clay bodies that I am working on, each made up as 10lbs of dry material and then made into a slurry, dried on plaster slabs and then wedged thoroughly. One clay body I tested is basically a 60/40 mix of a stoneware and porcelain which is pictured suited up nicely in what I am still erroneously referring to as Kuro-Oribe, after all, everything needs a name. This clay is my second test body, has an off-white color on its own and like the first test body throws rather nicely and tools well even with the coarse additions to the body and it didn't warp in the bisque or glaze firing which is a plus. As you can see I threw a simple teabowl form where I used a metal rib to open up the grain of the clay a bit showing up quite well under the glaze which fits rather well and has a nice overall appearance, looking a bit different than the stoneware or porcelain clays by themselves. The other clay bodies are a new "small batch" porcelain and a somewhat rugged stoneware both of which are showing promise, more as I get out more results.

YOU LOOK MARVELOUS

There are a lot of pots out there made by a lot of potters both past and present that are not great but are just brimming with character, personality and varying appeal and I doubt that will be any different in the foreseeable future. I guess my real point is that a pot doesn't have to be great to pull a viewer or collector in, hook, line and sinker, all it needs is a strength and appeal that is conversant at a variety of levels that sparks a connection. The real question though is where does the character come from, what constitutes that as an attribute; is it the posture, form, surface, idiosyncrasies, movement, lip, interior, kodai, tradition or is it a combination of all those qualities in a subtle and nuanced gesture? However you wish to determine character, I choose to see it as the definable nature, or attribute of a thing and in this specific discussion, I am referring to pottery. I think that ultimately how we see character is far less objective than it is subjective and it boils down to each individual driven by the sum total of their experiences that let us simply conclude that; "you look marvelous".

I have built a slideshow video of a pot that isn't what one thinks of as classically great but it makes up for any perceived short comings by over flowing with character. This chawan is by Hagi veteran, Mukuhara Kashun and is a skillful blend of tradition and personal vision from the wild wari-kodai and cut and reassembled bowl to the rich surface and flowing areas of milky white glaze creating movement around the chawan. There is a playfulness and strength in this chawan which adds to my observation that this bowl has an abundance of character and I hope that after seeing the video you may agree as well.

REPURPOSED

Illustrated is a rather nice Ki-Seto hanaire that apparently started life out as a kake-ire hanging vase though now the hole for the hanger has been plugged with wood and then lacquered over. Truth be told, at nearly 10" tall and not particularly light weight, I don't really see this as a practical hanging vase though i am sure it would have work but the real question is who altered the vase, potter or subsequent owner.

This vase was made by one of Arakawa Toyozo's main students, Nakayama Naoki whose Shino and Ki-seto works bare the strong influence of the master though the details differentiate master from student and in this case the posture and form are quite different as well and the dragged vertical mark adding definition to the form is not quite as modeled as that of Arakawa. As for the surface there is a nice balance of translucent and dry areas giving glimpse of the clay through the glaze which has a wide array of glassy yellow-green areas and shimmery crystals created by the firing and small ash crystals. At the end of the day whether it is free standing or hanging doesn't affect the simple, even noble form and an appearance that looks like it has traveled from a point in the very distant past.

Perhaps not 100% applicable but interesting none the less; "Uncommon thinkers reuse what common thinkers refuse."  JRD Tata

INTERRUPTED RHYTHM

Despite the fact that the way I am faceting pieces creates a distinct and somewhat unpredictable pattern around a piece, I have been working on simple and fast ways to further interrupt the rhythm of the surface and in this particular case I simply added an additional angled facet to every other boundary. This wasn't any momentous addition or move but it does seem to break up the overall flow just enough to make the eye pass over the surface a bit differently than it would without the added half facets. Thrown out of about two pounds of clay and just over six inches wet the surface is further broken up a bit using grog in the clay, something I don't do too often as it is murder on the calluses on the hands but I like the effect especially under transparent glazes. It never ceases to amaze me how such a small detail can change the entire look of a pot or anything else for that matter.

SHOW OFF

I am not sure what the weather is like where every you are but sunshine has been  intermittent in recent days. On the day that this piece was photographed the forecast called for overcast which we did have until this momentary respite in which the Sun cast it long, warm reach into our back room and coated the shelves in a wave of light and shadow. Peeking out of the shadows is this very nice little koro made of porcelain with yuriko underglaze shining at the surface with tones of red, grey and green decorating the piece in a myriad of vines and birds circling the piece. 

Made by Yoshida Takashi, this koro was thrown out of a dense, white porcelain and then had feet attached to the base and a lid thrown and pierced to complete the form. The lid compliments the pot quite well and fits the koro so precisely that there is literally no play between pot and lid. As you can see in the picture the arabesque style underglaze decoration was rendered in a steady and well practiced hand in which Yoshida used motifs that can be seen on quite a few of his pots from large to small and everything in between. I think the sun has done right by this pot showing off the nuances and subtleties of the decoration allowing all of the variations within the brushstrokes to step up and be noticed.

SAIDEIKA

Illustrated is a rather simple and unadorned saideika clay style mizusashi by Yachimata, Chiba resident; Misaki Mitsukuni (b.1951) which is a masters course in the complexity of simplicity. Misaki was originally influenced to make ceramics after an encounter with noted scholar and potter Koyama Fujio in 1972 and was further influenced by the works of Mark Rothko in terms of surface and interplay between the graceful form and surface. This particular hand built mizusashi is nothing but curves, an organic presence that reminds me of full, fat adzuki beans with a subtle and complex palette created by layering liquid clay to create an elegant and contemplative journey. Misaki won Kikuchi Biennial Grand prize 2013 for this style work which seems a marriage of some alien organic life together with a unconscious episode of "happening" that should resonate with even the most ardent vessel traditionalist.

FIRST STUDIO

I found this picture the other day and though not exactly the best photo it clearly shows a series of teapots and pouring vessels that date back to 1993. The photo is from my first studio since leaving Cleveland State, the shelves were made out of scrap wood that was found in the two separated basements of a duplex in Cleveland Heights which my ex-partner and her mother had just bought that was where I worked for about 2 years or so. All of the work at this time was terra cotta and fired in two brand new electric kilns with about half of the work I made going to my ex-partner to decorate in her signature style. Half our time was spent making pots and the other half went in to the initial rehab of the building, truth be told, I am not sure which one of us was less tethered to reality but both tasks got done despite the fact that most times we worked in over 6" of water on the floor! Ultimately my wife and I bought a house and I moved my clay, supplies and kilns to that location though I continued to make "blanks" for my ex-partner to decorate as she saw fit, this was studio number two where I began working all by myself with no one else moaning about my music or hours.

If memory serves me correctly, I was making teapots, pouring vessels and pitchers for shows in Washington State, Massachusetts and in Cleveland at the GBF Gallery. The truth is, I had been making pots for only about 3 years and winging the forms and decoration as I went along, in other words, little has changed. I have always liked making pots that needed some assembly required and the pieces parts of teapots in particular where always both a challenge and time well spent. I realize this isn't a great photo but when I ran in to it, I just couldn't resist posting it up.

FROM THERE TO HERE

Unless I am mistaken, I think that when most people think about the works of Sakai Kobu what immediately springs to mind is his translucent, wet and ethereal Kobu-Shino glaze that he is now best known for. Like most potters though, Sakai started out as a Mino potter who made works in two distinct styles of traditionally oriented Shino glazes; one was like most of his contemporaries and the other  a drier, stiffer surface that is still obviously Shino but has shed the fat and creamy qualities that many have been in pursuit of. As you can see in the illustration, the basics are the same, the buff clay body is covered in a thin iron slip over which this drier Shino glaze is applied and once fired there is a crispness to the design yet the surface is still readily identifiable as Shino-yaki.

I like this surface and actually find there are corollaries with his best known Kobu-Shino; there is a quietness to these pieces yet they have quite a bit to say in a contemplative fashion where there are no bells and whistles only the bare essentials of a narrative in three dimensions. I am fond of the Kobu-Shino pots and always welcome the opportunity to handle and study them when the chance arrives but I suspect without this drier, more traditional glaze variant and all the others that he worked through it is unlikely that what he is best known for would have ever been created, potters and their pots generally evolve in a mostly linear pathway, from there to here. More to follow as I get around to building a video slideshow of this Shino mizusashi.

EVERYDAY

Illustrated is a kama-hen Shino kabin by Mizuno Takuzo made back in the late 1980s. The honesty and directness of the form, surface and intent of this pot really appeals to me, there is nothing flashy, Mizuno threw a simple, everyday traditional form, glazed it in his "regular" Shino glaze and then put it in the kiln and fired it. In doing all of these simple and ordinary tasks that potters do every day and relying on his years of experience, he handed over the reins to the kiln, the fire and a select choice of wood to complete the painting and narrative of the pot and that is what you see here. The beauty of a pot of this type is that it is simple, an accumulation of everything going right and moving a simple vase from the everyday to wanting to see it and communicating with it each and every day, you can't really ask for too much more.

SPIRAL BLOSSOMS

I have been working with this ishime surface for quite some time now, dating all the way back to Cleveland State. In that time it has been used in a variety of ways including being glazed in clear or transparent glazes as well as some opaque ones as well. It is enjoyable playing with this from time to time and that brings us to the illustrated mizusashi form which makes use of black, white and iron engobe slips to complete the surface which includes panels of applied color and inlaid spiral blossoms filling the spaces between each panel top and bottom.

The lid and foot as well as the interior are glazed but the rest of the surface relies on the engobes to complete the surface which is loosely based on a combination of early 20th century wallpaper and Japanese kimono design. This rather simple, straight sided pot was made out of stoneware but occasionally I use porcelain for this technique and they can be a nice distraction from the normal glazing process even though I make very few of these pots, just another day and another way from keeping from getting bogged down and as always the music helps out as well.