MASTER'S SHADOW

Rustic and unpretentious are how I would choose to describe this functional Oni-Iga mizusashi by Ayukai Kogetsu lurking somewhat in the shadows, perhaps a metaphor. Created using the glazes and tutelage of her teacher, Tsukigata Nahiko it is apparent that though this relies heavily on her master's vision there are subtle difference in the surface and most obviously in the form of the mizusashi. Thrown out of a slightly sandy clay and carefully manipulated the addition of some throwing and potter's marks add a sense of motion to the form which is then completed with an array of color and textures from the interaction with the various glazes and the firing process to create this landscape of past and present. In this tea utensil I see elements for classic old Tamba and Seto ware vessels that gives this pot a sense of antiquity which is one of my favorite characteristics in a pot, using the old to make the new. Like many potters who work in their master's shadow Ayukai Kogetsu has navigated that fine line using some of what she learned under Tsukigata Nahiko to move forward and add a dimension or two to what it means to be Oni-Iga moving in to the future.       

"A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops."  Henry Brooks Adams