I
have had this conversation a number of times over the years, does a potter's
location dictate what his pottery is or is labeled? I think of two potters
neither of whom works in Shigaraki though there pottery is clearly Shigaraki-yaki;
Tsuji seimei and Kon Chiharu. As you can guess there are a number of potters
who make distinctively identifiable work though it is made somewhere outside of
where the pottery is normally associated. Such is half the case in regards to
this sweet little tokkuri as the box is labelled; ECHIZEN SHIGARAKI TOKKURI and
was made and fired in Echizen using not Echizen clay but what appears to be a
blend of Iga and Shigaraki clays with just the right amount of feldspar
inclusions to light up the pot like a star filled evening. The tokkuri is
somewhat light weight with a wonderful surface painted in various hues of ash
and effects that are as pleasant to feel as they are to just look at all
clearly created in a fierce, even ferocious process of the firing.
Made
by a Karatsu and Echizen specialist, Miyoshi Kentaro (1953-2018), he first
studied and worked in Karatsu before falling under the primal and alluring
spell of Echizen-yaki. Miyoshi moved and worked in Echizen creating pottery of
both distinct and seemingly polar opposites in terms of pottery, but clay is
clay as is firing and he navigated the two tradition for the rest of his life. I
should also note that Miyoshi's works were included in the Birmingham Museum of
Art's exhibition and catalogue entitled; ECHIZEN; EIGHT HUNDRED YEARS OF
JAPANESE STONEWARE (1995). It is clear in this Echizen-Shigaraki tokkuri that
Miyoshi Kentaro enjoyed combining styles and traditions in a cohesive and
ineligible manner and as you look at this little pot you can see, like a fine
blended whiskey, the various flavors that make up this memorable outcome of his
efforts.
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