Illustrated is a great detail shot of a
Tsukigata Nahiko Oni-Shino mallet vase. I think it is quite evident why I am
fascinated with Tsukigata work, there is an undeniable complexity to the
surfaces through his carefully crafted use of clay, glazes and firing process
which yields a wealth of effects and styles. In this case, the surface has a
wonderful, cascading area of coalesced iron that looks like a universe of copper
flecks frozen in time creating a shimmery and luminescent region which is
occasionally interrupted by the active flow of natural ash that built up on the
pot during the firing. In the depression of the ash has pooled creating a
wonderful visual landscape of olive toned ash bordering the molten green,
fractured bidoro which is doing its very best to spill over the sides and run
down the pot. Though Tsukigata Nahiko was exceptionally well known for his
vivid oil paintings, it is these painted surfaces that I am pleased to converse
with, the narratives presented are evocative, palpable and linger in the mind
making these pots a wondrous pottery koan, provoking both the eye and the mind.
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