Illustrated is a rather
stoic, defiant and possibly irate Oni seated and taking full advantage of the
sun as it emerges from the shadows. Though this is just another oni in the oeuvre
of Fujiwara Ikuzo, this particular piece strikes a chord with its strong
posture and pose and the well fired surface where just the right amount of ash
has coated the form without obscuring any of the details. Carved from a solid
block of clay by Mashiko artist, potter Fujiwara Ikuzo, his process starts out
in a flurry where he gets to the bones of the sculpture, removing the broad
strokes if you will before honing in on the details and bringing character and
emotion one knife cut (or chisel) at a time. Like something akin to Frankenstein's
monster, hewn from some amount of malleable earth, it is not electricity by
rather the intense process and flame of the wood kiln that breathes life into
his creation. The sheer diversity, animation and scale makes Fujiwara
Ikuzo's work worth a second, third and one hundredth look to drink in all the
spirit of the clay and his various studies of mischievous oni.
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