Perfect
for the season, this flattened grasses henko converses rather naturally about
fall with its deep rich red tones and somewhat mysterious qualities the results
of fire and a hand full of other essential elements; water, earth and air. This
evocative henko was made by Mino potter, Hori Ichiro how relies on the wood
fired experience to add layers of qualities to his pottery, a task at which he
has more than excelled. The pot was first thrown and then paddled flat to
create the form and with some simple iron slip and Shino glaze of varying
thickness, Hori has painted a rather Rimpa-esque pot that would as easily
sprung from the 17th century as it did from the 21st. As you can easily see,
there is a distinct moodiness to this piece, it reminds me of the atmosphere
from a Japanese ghost movie as set up by Mizoguchi Kenji balancing mystery and
pathos in this case on the three dimensional form. This somber fall henko (aki-henko) is rather
typical of the "decorated" works made by Hori Ichiro relying on slip
decoration using carving or resist to bring the design to life under his
various Shino surfaces and using layering of the glaze to create various effects
and moods that turn each piece in to a three dimensional storyteller. On a side
note, I took quite a few pictures of this piece quite a while back but didn't check them while I
still had access, some of the images are slightly out of focus but I think I
have more than enough to put together a video slideshow at some point in the
future. More latter?
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