TMC

There is something about a pot that is traditional and practical but at the same time has certain modern elements in its appearance. I think for the most part the modern is really just an extension of the potter's voice working through clay in a medium that is thousands of years old and a tradition that goes back to the middle ages in Japan to the birth of chanoyu. This rather straight forward Bizen mizusashi by Yokoyama Naoki is an excellent case in point where there are certain constraints placed upon the potter to fulfill the purpose, the intent of the pot, operating within some traditional guidelines while exercising a degree of personal expression and energy to create a modern pot. Casually thrown, the form has been interrupted by the addition of not only well placed lugs but by marks impressed as the wheel was moving to trick the eye in to seeing the continued sense of motion once the pot was fired. Likewise the well conceived lid has had marks added to create visual interest and to clearly define the lid with its pinched knob to act as the termination of the form. Though perhaps now better known for his shizen neriage and nerikomi work, this mizusashi clearly shows a maturity of Yokoyama's noborigama firing where the surface has just the right amount of ash deposit and flashing to enhance and not obscure the surface presenting a timeless modern classic to a centuries old tradition.