SUBSTANTIAL

Solid, sturdy, like a rock are certainly apt descriptions for this simple and fire weary Iga mizusashi by Imura Mitsuo. Made out of a dense, white stoneware, this pot was thrown and then marked up, cut a bit, hacked even and altered to create something akin to a fire scorched carved statuary reminding me a bit of the base of a gorinto (five ringed tower) situated throughout Japan. This misuzashi has deep potter's marks that ring the surface along with gashes carved out of the raw clay that have become prefect foils for the natural ash surface running from sheets of green glass to dark, ominous charcoal areas that bring a stoic and somber tune to this essential part of cha(no)yu. The carefully placed marks that encircle the body of the form at top and bottom compliment the meandering mouth of the pot and help narrate a journey around the pot through its light and dark surface like phases of the moon.         

Created by Imura Mitsuo, his pottery shows a much more solid hand and forceful, almost brutish forms than his master, Sugimoto Sadamitsu. Whether in his nature or as a means to escape his mentor, Imura's work as I mentioned, are substantial and powerful where weight is not a primary concern but in fact play into the narrative of how he must see form and the space it commands. I often conclude looking at his pottery, they are pieces of solitude and solemnity, like a fortress standing alone on a mountain top, defying the viewer to approach but one they do sharing the brillance of simpicity and design that defines both purpose and a singular aesthetic where sparsity and purity converge.