SAKAKURA SHINBEI XV ON IPTV

Here is a short video of Hagi potter, Sakakura Shinbei XV that is part of a TV special on the potter from NHK Television. The Sakakura family has been making pottery for a long while and are a dynasty in Hagi, headed by the XV in recent times. His great-grandfather XII (1881-1960) is among my favorite Hagi potters and his work has that classic and timeless quality about it. Sakakura Shinbei XV is well known for his large handbuilt pieces as well as his tea oriented works, works that follow in the traditional footsteps of the previous generations of the Sakakura family.

A SAD DAY

Our thoughts and prayers goes out to all affected by this tragic and senseless shooting in Newtown, CT today.

HOW LITTLE WE KNOW

Having decorated a number of terra cotta pots, next came time to add the detail by means of sgraffito . This is a mostly an auto-pilot process and at times my mind contemplates matter large and small, well mostly small to be honest. Out of this came a segment from a favorite movie of mine, I am not sure why, it is just the odd way my brain works at assembling associations. The song is "How Little We Know" as sung by Lauren Bacall with  Hoagy Carmichael on piano. The video comes from the 1944 Bogart and Bacall classic; TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT. However I got there, it is just a perfect interlude for a busy Wednesday 12/12/12.

FLOURISH

Over the 20th century, there have been a number of ceramic artists who were so much more than that. Working across a variety of art and craft, people such as Takeuchi Seiho, Kitaoji Rosanjin, Kawakita Handeishi, Arakawa Toyozo and Tsukigata Nahiko  created works in ceramics, bronze, painting/calligraphy and lacquer. Today when I think of a multi-discipline potter, I think of Tsujimura Shiro (b.1947) with his wonderful pottery across a breathe of traditions and styles and his creative approach to calligraphy and painting. Many of Tsujimura's paintings have a rather evocative, contemplative atmosphere to them with traits reminiscent of the Momoyama era suiboku painters.  Like his pottery, the ink works of Tsujimura have a visceral impact and an introspective beauty to them.

Illustrated is a wonderful photo of the multi-talented artist/potter, Tsujimura Shiro "painting" large scale calligraphies at an exhibition at Yanagi Oriental Fine Arts in New York. The photo was taken by passionate collector and President of the Japanese Art Society Of America, Susan Peters. The exhibit showcased Tsujimura's pottery and was accompanied by his shoga (callagraphic art) and in the background of the photo you can see two large vases by Tsujimura. With a bold and instant flourish the calligraphy appears though it was roughly 65 years in the making.

NOT THIS ONE, THE OTHER ONE

When one thinks of Raku, one immediately thinks of the Raku family dynasty, founded by Chojiro along with Hon'ami Koetsu. In general however, after the time of Chojiro and Koetsu, it is mostly the mainline Raku family that comes to mind when thinking about Raku chadogu. The Hon'ami side of the creative process is usually overlooked and the family is thought of as sword experts/appraissers and sword polishers, however, over the centuries, the Hon'ami have continued to create pottery right through to the modern day. Illustrated is a Aka-Raku chawan of fine rounded form with exceptional areas of black carburization about the surface, interior and on the foot ring. This chawan was made by Hon'ami Sokyu, a direct descendant of Hon'ami Koetsu who is making tea ware in the traditional tebinari (hand molded) method as passed down from master to pupil over the centuries. In many respects it has more in common with the fuedal days of the Edo Period than it does with modern times, but after all, that what good Raku should strive for.

For more pictures of this chawan along with a recently added Shimaoka Tatsuzo plate, please go to my Trocadero website where I am also running a 25% off sale on pottery that I make;

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

OFF KILTER

I will spare all the recounting of a strange day, but it has been just one of those off kilter days. Issues with customs and the Post, glaze problems, clay problems (as in throwing), add in a day where the cat has decided to play Ninja warrior every time you go by and you might get a sense of my meaning. I am not saying it has been a bad day, just one of those days where everything feels as if it has shifted  five degrees off center. If I had been craving chocolate milk, I may have credited it to a temporal rift. Despite struggling with some very wet terra cotta, I threw what I had planned and was able to sand some greenware and slip it without any incident, so in reality I have little I should complain about.

Illustrated is a shikishi painted in a vivid tone of black by Oni-Shino pioneer, Tsukigata Nahiko. The four characters, kanji, are painted over a light gray wash most probably representing a bamboo stalk. It has little to do with my day or post, other than it has a nice centering effect.

"We should tackle reality in a slightly joking way, otherwise we miss its point."  Lawrence Durrell (1912-1990)

C'EST EN BLEU

Illustrated is a quartet of  Persian vases by Toruku-ao specialist, Kato Kenji that all say; "this is blue". I am rather fond of his work and his definition of  blue, so it was nice to be able to see and handle this group of pots, two glazed in his transparent Persian blue and the other two in his more opaque glaze that works well with bold, thick decoration. The tallest of the group is just about 12" and all four were thrown out a wonderful earthenware that fires up to a reddish buff color. I am continually fascinated by the lyrical brushwork that Kato Kenji used from wispy to bold all laid down quickly and with skill rehearsed from decorating thousands of pots over a lifetime exploring blue.

INEVITABLITY

"Just when I thought I was out................they pull me back in". After completing a large number of orders, commissions and pots for several holiday shows, I thought my terra cotta run was at an end, for now. However, it started off innocently enough with an email asking if I could make a covered serving bowl in my Falling Leaves pattern, then my wife says, well, as long as you need to fill the kiln, I could use 4 shallow bowls in the Tenot pattern (carved with white slip). Next thing you know, I am making a few of these, a few of those and I am in the midst of another terra cotta cycle. I am also going to make a few extra Falling Leaves and Tenot pattern pieces just to have some of the newer work around. It never hurts to have spare pots in the works, someone may even want them.

Illustrated in the foreground is a terra cotta hand-built vase with small lugs, it currently measures 14" tall by 12" long. I thought it would make a nice platform to decorate and it was a spur of the moment project though I will likely make another to fit up the back of the kiln. If you look in the background you can see the four bowls that Mindy requested for our cupboard along with the rest of one afternoon's throwing. Considering I have been throwing terra cotta, stoneware and porcelain for nearly two decades, it is rather inevitable that I will be throwing the red menace for some time to come.

ITS ALL IN THE WRIST

Illustrated is a fine shikishi by legendary potter; Kato Tokuro. This shikishi is painted in a rich, deep black with areas of "flying white" appearing like a noble pot, balanced in the center of the card with the depth of his spirit evident in the bokki of the image. It is quite possible it is all in the wrist, but far more likely it is the spirit of the potter that creates these dramatic calligraphies. Over the years I have seen quite a few shikishi and kakejiku by Kato Tokuro that depict the kanji for "tsubo" (pot) and each one is a bit different and unique, just like the pots of the master himself.

SHIZENYU

Illustrated is a Bizen chawan by Masamune Satoru who I have written about before in my blog. There is some connectivity that I feel with much of his pottery as I also do with another Bizen potter who left us much too early, Kaneshige Michiaki (1934-1995). I am not trying to insinuate that there work is similar, rather both potters pot and fire in a way that for some reason I naturally relate to; each has decidedly created a style that is identifiable and comforting. This chawan by Masamune is large and was well fired with a natural build up of ash with the interior covered as well and appearing wet. The form just asks to be grabbed up and handled and from foot to lip, this is the type of chawan that has a lot to offer and a great deal to say.