WAITING FOR THE UME BLOSSOMS

A fellow collector or rather someone who is buying pots to use, sent these two photos which I assembled to give both views of the vase. The pot is an all naturally fired Echizan hanaire by Kumano Kuroemon, the type he puts in his blast furnace kiln without any glaze and as you can tell what is visible is the rich purple surface of the pot with areas of running ash, rushing to the bottom as the piece was fired together with an array of wad scars adding to the rustic and powerful landscape. The pot stand guard in front of wind swept pine scroll waiting for the ume blossoms to bloom come spring to fulfill the purpose of this vase. There is another factor to this vase as it was selected by Kumano to appear in the TOH #88 dedicated to his work (and vision) as a potter attesting to the fondness and regard he must have had for this pot. I think it is safe to say that with or without the vivid blossoms, this vase is more than enough to get you through the winter months with something to have a pleasant fireside chat with.

SNOW WHITE

Illustrated is solitary Shino vase by Higashida Shigemasa punctuated in use with a floral arrangement. It is simple in form but the piece has a wide array of features that are compelling enough; from rich textural surface, direct spatula marks on opposing sides and the soft, velvety texture with a satin appearance to the glaze. Higashida calls this unique glaze, Hakusetsu, white snow and it surely paints a picture of purity, of softly drifting snow engulfing the form. For nearly two decades the potter has been working on perfecting this glaze and its use finding both traditional and modern forms that compliment each other. I have had the opportunity to see and handle a wide number of different Shino works and I can say that this glaze is among the most idiosyncratic and personal surfaces I have encountered. I can't speak to whether Higashida has perfected this glaze yet to his taste but in hand and also in use, it seems about as perfect as it can get.

If you would like to see more photos of this vase, please feel free to click on the link which will bring you to my Trocadero marketplace;

http://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1323812/item1323812store.html