Friday, July 31, 2020

FINISHING TOUCHES


Having a peculiar interest in mallet vases, I thought this photo was worth sharing. This illustration of Furutani Michio putting the finishing touches of what is likely to be an Iga mallet vase originally came from a pottery magazine from 1999 which shows him making a variety of different pots as well as a group of finished, fired pieces. As you can see in the photo, this pot was made by the coil and throw method and the proportions show a solid, purposeful intent created to not only stand up to the ferocity of the firing process but to function as intended without fail. The surface has been left with just the simplest of marks created during the making process with only the minimal amount of added detail to imbue a bit of animation to the form. I have seen an handled quite a few mallet vases by Furutani Michio and it is quite clear that despite their height or width there are "fixed" proportions that guide his hand in each and every case, locked away through years of experience and study that in the wet clay, just happen.