Sometimes
when you look at a pot, you can plainly see that a potter was listening and
watching very carefully everything his master said and did. In watching the
creation or design of a pot, you can see the nuanced decision making and the
subtleties that bring clay to life. This is what I see in the works of Kawai
Takeichi, attention to detail and a potter who watched and learned while at the
same time formulating his own voice within a tradition the survives to this
day. This simple molded hachi is a wonderful exercise in a sound form together
with a simple iron tessha and an ash glaze that were all used to the fullest
proving that a hand full of clay, some basic chemicals can go a rather long why
and to rather good effect. Starting with the design of the piece which is
at its core simple and a homerun of nuanced details, the pot is easy to make
and use with visual particulars including the angled corners and raised ridges
create an interest in the surface before the glaze is even applied. Once the
ash glaze is used Kawai Takeichi ladled over a rich tessha that when fired has
added movement and life to the hachi without any fuss or superfluous additions.
In the end learning good and practical design from a master like Kawai Kanjiro
certainly can not hurt in one's pursuit of creating work based on a tradition
while spreading one's wings to make work that is more about the student than
the master.
.JPG)