SQUARED UP, ASSEMBLED AND FIRED

A while back I posted up a greenware version of this thrown round, squared up and assembled stoneware vase and here is the finished piece. Glazed in my Kuro-Oribe glaze, I used a soft layer of iron over the form to keep from obscuring all of the marks and details around the piece from where I have left soft rasp marks, joints where the pieces and lugs where luted together, the pie crust impressions around the mouth and the subtle upturned areas that help define the base and foot area. As I mentioned previously, this was rather quickly thrown and built without any real desire to make a perfect geometric form, instead I did what I mostly do, I "eye-balled" the construction in the hopes that would add a sense of non-chalance to the vase. I have to admit that considering the bulk of my work is just thrown, these thrown, altered and assembled pieces are both a blessing and a curse as when things go well it feels like time well used but when things go wrong, they usually go very wrong. All in all I felt like this was time well spent and an investment into being thoroughly square.     

(I will admit this is not the best photograph but try as I might I just couldn't get the surface to "pop" and I am left with a bit of color and the overall form. Hopefully the sunlit detail will give a little more insight into the surface.)

HERE & THERE; KI-SETO EDITION

A while back I handled a rather nice, certainly exhibition quality Ki-Seto chawan by Hori Ichiro and even thought I had built a slideshow video of it I can't seem to locate it at the moment so I went with this picture for the time being. Though this is not the best quality picture, taken quite some time back, I set up this impromptu shot of the chawan in front of the exhibition catalogue that accompanied the bowl. The photo clearly shows the chawan in situ and in print but once again I am struck by the variation between the piece on the desk and in the catalogue. Though the print version is just a tiny bit out of focus, in certain respects they look like two chawan fired at either different times or in different locations in the kiln. 

Luckily I have handled the bowl and I can attest to the fact that it actually looks like both depending on how and where the teabowl is observed again a trick of the diversity of the light source(s). What I can tell you is that it is a rather classic example of Hori Ichiro's Ki-Seto work with a great texture and the waterfall of aburage styling across the face is just what I like as it blends back into the classic glaze texture. I am going to have to hunt around to see if I can find the original slideshow that I seem to remember making and if not, locate the photos and start again from scratch.

IRON TSUBO

Outfitted in mostly iron with hints of whitish feldspar showing through here and there, gravity plays a good role in the couture of this Oni-Shino ko-tsubo. Surrounded by droozy, running tendrils of mixed natural ash and iron this small iron tsubo was made by Tsukigata Nahiko and though clearly not a chaire, it is somewhat close to that scale at around six inches or so in height. As you can see in this photo this pot is covered, punctuated by speckles of iron rising to the surface adding to the visual texture of colors and effects colliding to create an ethereal sphere at home on a shelf or suspended in some distant and far off place. The form is simple, perhaps reminiscent of its larger cousins with just the right amount of movement accentuated by the throwing marks around the circumference of the pot with a distinct and determined foot and a mouth ringed in blend of ash and iron. I guess in the scheme of things this is a small, simple pot by Tsukigata Nahiko but the more you look the more there is to see and that is always my expectation of his work and the myriad of all things Oni-Shino.

EVERYONE'S FAVORITE POLYGON

While throwing either an order or a commission a few weeks back I took the time and made a square and a hexagonal teabowl to end my day on my own terms as what could be more exciting than creating a six sided polygon, everyone's favorite shape? Illustrated is the hexagonal bowl decorated in Narumi-Oribe style with rubbed iron panels with black decoration and sgraffito under a clear glaze with the remainder of the bowl glaze in Oribe. My goal was to get strong, accentuated lines between each plane of the hexagon and a good contrast between the clear and Oribe panels, I think I succeeded in my goal with that distinct contrast and absolutely no crawling from any surface incompatibility, for one of a series of one, this is about the best outcome I could have asked for.

KO-TSUBO III

Over the years I have seen a number of utsushimono of this particular form, perhaps the most notable by Tsujimura Shiro though this particular Iga ko-tsubo is by Imura Mitsuo. Small in stature and about the same dimensions tall as it is wide, this rough and tumble Iga ko-tsubo must have been fired in the perfect place in the kiln as the surface is a wonderful story of process and determination painting a rustic landscape that is what wood firing is all about. Beyond the wonderful shape and crisp delineation between body and shoulder it is the mouth that captivates ones attention all sharp, craggy and dog-eared resembling a mountain chain well off in the distance but able to fit in the palm of your hand. Though barely the size of a chawan, it is filled with character from its offset posture and vivid palette of ash coloration but it is the strength that you can't help noticing first and foremost that far exceeds its scale.

BAKED IN

I have written about the maker of this Shigaraki mizusashi, Ota Minoru on my blog before. I am intrigued by how he uses and works clay and how he interprets older forms with a unique and naïve style. As with this mizusashi, his pots have a casual, quirky and often wonky appearance made of clay with lots of feldspar which punctuates the pot like stars in the sky under the wood fired surfaces adding ash and hi-iro to the pot like a painter adding dabs and fields of color to his canvas. Beyond the feldspar and ash, this mizusashi is well articulated in marks from the potter both horizontally and vertically adding movement and dimension to the form, marks that are spontaneous and fierce like the fire that it had to survive. The posture and attitude of the piece exudes confidence and strength collected over years of working in clay and infusing it into each pot made. I have to admit, I have a fondness for pots that combine spontaneity, naiveté and honesty all in one package and this Ota mizusashi clearly has all those attributes and character all baked in.

PROTOTYPE REVISITED

Though it took some time to get this katakuchi prototype fired, illustrated is the final product. This thrown and altered piece was made a while back to show a customer who approved the design as soon as it was glaze fired and now the group of pieces are all made and bisque and waiting to be glazed and fired. As you can see this piece was glazed in a Kuro-Oribe style glaze that clearly shows the marks and texture on the clay surface from when the pot was thrown and altered where subtle faceted plans appear activating the pot along with the movement of the glaze. There are accents of rich blue-black on the spout and around the mouth of the form along with patches on the sides of this triangular pot. All in all the customer and I are happy with the results and now I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can get six pieces to match more or less with out any glaring inconsistencies out of the glaze firing.

HARMONIOUS CONNECTION

Many times when I am looking at tokkuri and guinomi pairing I think to myself that this was really a marriage of convenience and not really of a more harmonious connection. The attached photo(s) of yet another exceptional pairing of Kuro-Bizen tokkuri and guinomi by Oiwa Tomoyuki were very considerately assembled by a European collector in which the pieces are not only well matched but have the look of having been fired at the same time in the same kiln in near proximity to each other. On the rear of each piece is a near perfect match of color, running ash and texture shimmering in just the right amount of wetness while the faces are coated in a healthy coating of ash with hints of motion moving horizontally across the forms. The tapering vertical attitude and distinct posture of both tokkuri and guinomi creates that harmonious connection while the proportions create an ideal set where characteristics and character are simpatico. For two objects brought together under the skillful attention of a collector with just the right amount of input from the gallery owner and let's not forget the potter render an equation that is defined by far more than happenstance or convenience ending in an ideal pairing. 

WHAT'S OLD IS NEW

This wide shouldered jar is a classic utsushi-mono of a medieval Ko-Shigaraki tsubo made centuries ago but what's old (in appearance) is new in creation. made by Tani Seiuemon back in the mid-1990s, this tsubo exhibits all the classic and traditional characteristics of much older pottery with just the right amount of the potter's personal touch to show in the pot. The broad shoulders and animated form show off the right amount of slump caused by the intense wood firing of the original archetype which are skillfully mimicked in this pot to strike a rather natural and antiquated appearance. As mentioned in previous posts, Tani started off studying old Shigaraki pottery before ever making pots and when he did so, he brought his knowledge of all the aesthetics and forms that had preceded and infused it in to his works leaving quite a number of utsushi-mono, copies among his body of work. I have to admit that I really enjoy the naïve and honest qualities that surround this pot; carefully and skillfully created and manipulated to look quite casual and as much a result of the ferocity of the kiln rather than the hands of the potter.

ODDS & ENDS

Today was truly an odds and ends kind of day in the studio starting with getting everything cleaned up and put away after a recent glaze session and kiln firing. Once that was completed, I took the time to pack up several small commissions which didn't take a lot of time but I wanted out of the way. After this and after a quick lunch came the beginning of my throwing day which started with a group of porcelain test cups followed by a number of stoneware test cups and a group of some orders/ commissions which included some 14" serving bowls and a couple of serving plates as well. The day in the studio ended with me decorating up two stoneware teabowls that are orders from half way around the world. I decorated the first one as seen here and have decided to hold the back up just as thrown until the other is bisque, glazed and fired. Always a good idea to have a spare just in case an asteroid or some other calamity hits the studio.

SEMI-LINEAR

Illustrated is another Bizen chawan by Sakikabara Keishi though in this case it is left more or less as it was thrown with the exception of the foot. This Kuro-Bizen style chawan shows some small amount of manipulation creating a form both large and well suited to the hands showing off a rich lustrous surface and a fitting but slightly obtuse kodai. Despite the initial display of simplicity, there is a complex arrangement of texture to the clay and all natural surface with hints of spatula work and some other marks rendered by the potter and a well fired surface of rich diversity. As is abundantly clear, Sakikabara studied with Isezaki Jun in the late 70s and took away well learned lessons as to how best to make use of clay, surface and firing in which he crafted his own unique voice of modern day Bizen. Perhaps the biggest take away from this chawan is a well conceived blend of the old and new while moving in a semi-linear fashion within the Bizen tradition, using the best of both worlds. By putting forward a style influenced by time and archetypes, old and modern Sakikabara Keishi clearly has something new to say and that is locked deep inside a chawan just like this one.     

WELLSPRING

When someone casually mentions the Mino potter, Kato Toyohisa my mind immediately runs a slideshow of pictures of pots with thick, curdled Shino glazes, semi-iridescent Oribe and forms and pieces that are fairly modern in their orientation. This particular large and bold Shino vase has some of those elements infused into its bones and DNA but there are classic, traditional fundamentals at work here which clearly show where the potter and his pots drawn from, that wellspring that is Momoyama and old pottery. The form is encased in a pure white feldspar Shino that is rich in its opacity with hints, bold areas and flashes of iron red bleeding through like brush strokes on an abstract painting's canvas. There is a profusion of strength and nobility in the form and posture of this pot and I hope this short video slideshow captures some of the features that make this a rather alluring pot in person.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngDdCckp444&ab_channel=CABatA3S

WAY BACK WEDNESDAY

I am still making some effort to convert old 35mm slides to digital images with some coming out better than others. This large, Albany slip glazed covered jar was in a recent batch made and fired in the last firing I ever did at Cleveland State University. Thrown loosely, well loosely for me that is, while it was firming up a bit I pulled it to one side to offset the symmetry of the piece. Once bisque the pot was glazed in an Albany slip glaze with a black overglazed sprayed across the surface and swiped diagonally around the piece. I decided to pull this out for way back Wednesday as it clearly defines a short moment in time a really long time ago where everything was an experiment and the less controlled the better. The times sure have changed where now I try to have a group of pots in every kiln that I am 99% certain they will come out as I expect* and control is more or less a good thing though admittedly something of an illusion.  

(*I am reminded of the boxing adage, "everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face in that every potter thinks they know what to expect until they open the kiln.)