FIRST

It seems only fitting that the last piece I received last year and the first piece for 2024 were by siblings*, the previous a maple ash glazed guinomi and the later a yuteki-temmoku one. Illustrated is a yuteki-temmoku guinomi by Kimura Moriyasu which depending on the dimensions could be a guinomi or a chawan, a form typically used in both for this potter along with the way in which the piece was glazed. The background is deep and dark, almost black on which the rusty, spotted iron is sprinkled about excepting the lip which has a band of solid color that helps act to define the diminutive form. The foot's exposed clay is a rich dark black with a wonderful crinkled texture and a simple excised foot looking as if over a thousand or more have proceeded its creation. Perhaps a curious feature of this guinomi is whether by happenstance or planning there is a large rusty spot on the inside and out at almost exactly the same place adding a hint of visual flavor to the small pot. This particular piece has a nice weight and solid proportions feeling quite nice in the hand with a perfect lip for use and holding a generous but not unweildy amount of liquid and when all is said and done, it is quite clear this was not Kimura Moriyasu's first run at making a guinomi or even his 1000th.

 (There were three siblings actually; Kimura Morikazu, Kimura Moriyasu and Kimura Morinobu.)