FRACTURED ICE

What a wondrous thing that glazes can be, whether they are naturally occurring or composed like some alchemists symphony, the possibility and effects are endless. When I really think about glazes is that they have the distinct possibility to present defined galaxies within their surfaces painting ominous and somber realms to those of great visual intensity as if a sun has gone supernova within them. Though there are a great number of stellar pots that bare no glaze and submit to the viewer as naked form, there are an equal number that are only completed with the addition of glaze and decoration adding depth and profundity to the canvas that is clay. Illustrated is a close up of a rich and evocative kannyu style seiji glaze that almost radiates the cold like the fractured ice that it seemingly imitates. I find these cracked and fractured surfaces to be mysterious and compelling leading me along in a narrative that the potter, clay and glazes has created. In this case, this detail shot is of a tall and elegant bottle-vase made by Minegishi Seiko only a few years ago of tapering form with lobes running vertically accentuating the stature of the piece and the glaze which descends into the depression; a perfect meld of the Chinese archetype and the Japanese interpretation. More images to follow.

CRACKED

There is a quiet and grace to celadon which is not lost on potters who makes pieces that are best suited with seiji glazes; simple and streamlined forms with accents only where called for. Starting life as a thrown round bowl form and then ovaled, this seiji mizusashi has a beautiful, cracked, double refractive surface which clings to the thoughtfully thrown vessel where the slight undulations to the pot are accentuated by the surface. The mizusashi is then completed with a custom made black lacquer lid which compliments the form to the fullest creating an eye catching work that takes decades of experience to carry off.

This functional and simple tea piece was made by Kyoto native Kimura Nobuyuki (b.1965) who studied with his father, Kimura Morinobu one of the Kimura San- Mori; Kimura Morikazu, Moriyasu and Morinobu. Nobuyuki set up his own pottery studio/kiln in Shiga prefecture in 1992 and has had a rather busy career winning numerous awards with frequent exhibitions through out Japan. His work is predominantly seiji pottery with a variety of glazes that run from light elegant blues, rich greens, yellows and even pinkish lavender pieces all the while keeping in mind what forms are best for this deceptively simple glaze with a dash of complexity thrown in to keep the potter on their toes.

KANNYU

Illustrated is a modern classic beishokuji kannyu vase by celadon master; Minegishi Seiko (b.1952). The details around the mouth and waist of the form accentuate the double refractive quality of the glaze with the yellow-brown tone being enhanced by the iron rich clay the pot was thrown from. Minegishi Seiko  considers himself largely self-taught and his early work is a wonderfully elegant kohiki style heavily influenced by Korean pottery and though he continues to use some of his earlier forms, his more modern celadon work is literally night and day from his first footsteps in to pottery. This celadon vase was made in Nasu where he has his studio and kiln, located in Tochigi Prefecture and the center of his creation and constant experimentation in glaze making, forms and surface decoration. Though Minegishi is very well known for his unique shinogi (ridgeline) technique that is just masterful with the kannyu style glazes, it is the depth and beauty of his calmer forms that transcend his pots into a world of contemplation and reflection, painting a fractal universe in three dimensions.

TWO OF A KIND

Yesterday a box arrived via UPS and in it was three pots from a friends collection, formerly from the mid-west, now parts unknown. Two of the pots are by Ningen Kokuho, Shimizu Uichi in a rather evocative and noble Horai celadon with rich slip trailed iron decoration under the glaze. Though these are two of a kind, they have striking differences from presence and posture to glaze quality and statement but both are conversant within the style and have quite a bit to say. I made a short video of the Horai chawan and hope that it gives a slight glimpse in to what the bowl is like. I would like to think that it captures the posture, volume and sensibility of the bowl.

This chawan can also be seen over on my Trocadero page by following the link;

http://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/catalog/query.php  

PERFECTION REVISITED

Perfection is a tricky thing unless you are speaking about scientific or mathematical perfection. What I have come to think is that perfection is an amalgam of a myriad of mistakes or imperfections that one way or another tricks the senses into perceiving the perfect. If you have ever used an instrument to measure a thrown pot which appears perfectly round, you will be amazed that it is anything but. Years ago, my wife and I knew a guy who cast specific parts for the US Air Force emergency response equipment. These cast pieces had to be perfect; they were weighed to within 1/1000 of a gram, tested with a durometer for exact hardness, measured with varying calipers to measure within 1/10,000 of an inch and finally x-rayed to be sure there were no voids, casting flaws, etc. For such items and certainly other scientific objects and calculations, perfect has to be absolutely perfect.

My latest conundrum is at what point does a perfect pot have to be perfect, specifically porcelains celadon pieces? There is a purity and simplicity, even a brutal honesty to these pots; to some sterile and boring, to others breath taking, inviting and serene, that is the foundation of these works. Despite your viewpoint, there is a resolute perspective that these pots should be as perfect as is possible.

In my blog I have covered wood fired pieces as being perfect if they are in the same condition the potter unloaded them from the kiln or placed them in a signed box, scars and all, but for porcelain, especially celadons, a whole different set of rules applies*. Beyond the obvious of good form, symmetry and visual balance there is perfection without being cold, boring or lifeless. If you think of potters like Kawase Shinobu, Meada Akihiro and Fukami Sueharu, can you imagine a piece with pinholes, a blemish or two, glazed voids, glaze drips or overlaps, areas of crawled glaze? While these "faults" work well with the way a potter like Kato Tsubusa works, the truth is, these pieces are held to a higher standard of perfection because of their simple surfaces, any imperfection is glaringly obvious and seems magnified tenfold. With opaque celadons, I personally find no room for any imperfections but with transparent and translucent glazes ever so minor blemishes don't necessarily doom a piece; think of the small pinholes and iron spots in the various seiji surfaces of Shimizu U'ichi and even Okabe Mineo. Over time, the one thing that I have discovered is that "perfection" is ultimately defined by and relative to what the pot is, varying wildly from style to style and what is acceptable with Iga-yaki is no where palatable with painted Imari porcelains.

Illustrated is an Ouji mizusashi by Hokkaido potter, Ono Kotaro. His pots are hand thrown and hand carved to utter perfection and his fit and finish of his pottery is exceptional. As a potter (and collector) the mind reels as I imagine how he is able to maintain such exacting curves and create such a perfect surface. Years of patient training, experience and muscle memory all combine to present hand made perfection.

"Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."  Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900-1944)

(*Restrictions, exceptions and exclusion may apply.)

 

 

 

COOL BLUE MONDAY

Based on Longquan glazes developed in China during the Sung Dynasty (1127-1297), celadon glazes have played an important role in the pottery of Japan especially during the studio movement of the Meiji Period. Indirectly, Suzuki Sansei (b. 1936) is related to that movement through his master Kawamura Seizan (1890-1967) who served as a bridge between the old and the contemporary. Through his study with Kawamura, Suzuki Sansei learned the skills and technology of modern celadon along with an array of other techniques, though he choose to dedicate his work to the cool blue seiji glazes on porcelain which he is best known for. Illustrated is a classic example of pottery by Suzuki Sansei, most likely made in the mid-1990's. The form is glazed in a pale blue seiji, almost robin's egg in color, which along with a few accentuated craze lines paints a noble picture of a simple and elegant pot finished off with a loop handle that mimics the overall form. Though richly influenced by Chinese pottery, this mizusashi has its roots clearly in  Japan that goes back at least as far as the Edo Period. Suzuki Sansei has done an exceptional job of infusing the pot with the best of the past to create a thoroughly modern piece.

A BOOK GLAZE

When I first decided to go and interview the local pottery professor in Plattsburgh, NY (Bill Klock) I stopped at the local used book store and bought the two pottery books they had; FINDING ONE’S WAY IN CLAY (1972) by Paulus Berensohn and MAKING POTTERY WITHOUT A WHEEL (1965) by F. Carlton Ball and Janice Lovoos. Though neither gave me any insight into wheel throwing, both we very illuminating as to the scope and possibilities of clay.

The other day, I was tooling around Amazon.com and stumbled on the MAKING POTTERY WITHOUT A WHEEL book and have to admit, I was somewhat surprised at one of the reviews of the book. It pointed out that the glaze section of the book was severely outdated. Not to sound argumentative, but how can any glazes, that work, be outdated.

I have been using several formulas, mostly that I have altered a bit, from this book for 20 years. What worked when the book came out in 1965, works today. In fact, one of the nicest blue-green celadons I have ever used came from this source and I continue to use it now and again some 45 years after it was published. Here is the formula exactly as it is in the book;

Choy Blue Celadon Cone10 (weight in grams)
Feldspar 1226
Whiting 150
Flint 496
Kaolin 96
Barium Carbonate 400
Red Iron Oxide 50

I have also illustrated the glaze on two teabowls I have made. The first one shows the glaze right out of the book. The pale yellow-green version was just tweaked a bit. Though most of my glazes started out as book glazes, most have been so altered that they bare little resemblance to the original formulas, but this Choy Blue Celadon is great, as is and I love this glaze and think it is absolutely timeless, many thanks to Ball and Lovoos!