Monday, January 10, 2022

RABBIT IN A BOX

So here is what I do know, this is a Bizen kogo made by Matsumoto Tsutomu and that is where things get a bit fuzzy as I am not acquainted with this particular potter but I can easily spot a rabbit in a box. Though boxed and signed I am just in the dark about the maker though I can say that the kogo in the form of a rather idiosyncratic rabbit (usagi) is rather well fired with swaths of deep rich purple fire color and areas of peppered ash and charcoal yet luckily the top and bottom of the form weren't fused shut. Though it may not appear this way to everyone, I really like the boxy, stylized form of the kogo which conjures up memories of seiji okimono by Suzuki Osamu where the form is accentuated by the minimum of detail to tell it full story. Though this potter is unknown to me, I enjoy the dry, wistful humor presenting itself like a hint of sarcasm locked away in clay and if at the end of the day it says quite a bit more than just "kogo" is there really anything else that I need to know?