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.