SALTY II

Illustrated is a simple en-yu salt fired chawan by Tokoname potter; Ito Yushi (b.1945). The form appears to be a blend of both the Korean archetype and a typical Japanese chawan with a wonderful surface created by using a kohiki style slip before the piece was salt fired. During the process several serene gohonde style spots were created and are surrounded by a patch of rich pink blushing which defines the face of the bowl. The crackled slip texture and distinct finger mark help distinguish the kodai from the bowl form and adds a bit more intrigue to the bowl. Ito Yushi is a rather adventurous Tokoname potter having studied with both Hineno Sakuzo and Tomimoto Goro, he has been very involved with the study of Korean pottery and has visited and exhibited in S. Korean a number of times. This chawan clearly shows a touch of that Korean sensibility while clearly stating its place of origin.

PERPETUAL MOTION

I received a rather nice Shino vase today and went ahead and made a short slideshow video of the piece, at nearly a foot tall and in perpetual motion, this modern spiral vase was made by the late Kato Yasukage XIV circa 2008. Tall and imposing the spiraled surface is glazed in a rich Shino glaze that shows off a wide array of textures and color variations from pure white, blushed pink hues and rich iron red circling the base of the pot. The textured flutes draw one in and around the pot and create a vivid canvas for this creative master gone way to early.

You can see more of the Kato vase over at my Trocadero marketplace as well; http://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1309625/item1309625store.html

IF IT'S WEDNESDAY, THIS MUST BE STONEWARE

Yesterday was one of those crazy days that started with me carving a few terra cotta bowls. From there I progressed to throwing a group of eight terra cotta pieces, then a group of eight porcelain bowls to slip and carved and I finished the day by throwing several stoneware bottles to slip and heavily texture followed by carving the last four slipped porcelain bowls from the day before. It makes for a busy day and sometimes leaves me feeling a bit schizophrenic in terms of bouncing back and forth between clays, styles and tasks. I should probably mention that I also had to make up several slips along the way as they ran out and were needed to keep things going straight to slip the terra cotta and porcelain pieces. I hope it doesn't sound like I am complaining because I am not, I would rather be busy than idle and would rather be throwing than anything else. Tomorrow, more throwing in both porcelain and stoneware.

Illustrated is a 12" (?) tall stoneware bottle that I threw yesterday and tooled and textured today. Since the technique and surface has been coming out on smaller pieces, I have decided to graduate to slightly bigger pots and see how it looks under the Oribe and possibly the saffron glazes. I am not sure when these two bottles and a covered jar will get fired as these are spec pieces and there are orders and pieces for a couple of galleries and a holiday show ahead of them. We'll see how it goes and if possible, I'll try to get at least one in the next stoneware/ porcelain firing.

TOH-BYOBU

Illustrated is a very nice "cong" style Iga vase by legendary potter, Furutani Michio. With running ash, areas of dark charcoal scorching and a wide array of other effects, each of the four sides with a distinct and intertwined landscape tells its own story of a time spent in a brutal and ferocious firing much like an expressionist folding screen (byobu). Having an appearance of tremendous age and distinct nobility, this pot like most pieces by Furutani Michio ties together a tradition that spans back to the last days of Sueki pottery and permeates through most wood fired pots in both Iga and Shigaraki to this day. Imbued with purpose, function and a distinct aesthetic it is easy to see why such pots stand out even today among a diverse and very talented field.

AUTHENTICITY

With a dramatic flair and spontaneous and unfaltering movement the surface of this large O-tsubo is brought to life with a practiced and confident hand. Made by the late Hayashi Kotaro (1940-1981) it is quite evident where his younger brother, Shotaro learned the technique of making the most and best of each clay altering cut, facet or mark. Glazed in a rich Oribe, the glaze pools in depressions and tears along the surface creating dark, almost mysterious hues of greens that beckon to the viewer to investigate the depths of the textured surface reading the decoration as it circles of pot. I really love this glaze, it has an authenticity to it, it is simple and original and conjures up thoughts of early Edo Oribe. Despite it feudal presence it is bold and modern though made prior to Hayashi Kotaro's death in 1981, if pushed, it would be hard to say exactly when this pot was made.

B&A

Illustrated is a before and after shot of a teabowl with thick combed slip under an Ao glaze I am working with. I have tweaked the Ao yet again and am trying to get it just a little bit richer by blending cobalt and iron and would like to see it with a slightly deeper quality coming out of the next stoneware firing. I was just starting to get things going for another high-fire cycle last week when a gallery called letting me know they were down to only a couple of pieces so I am currently working in terra cotta and making some tebori and b&w slip pots. The next test for the Ao will have to wait a bit but this teabowl, out of the last firing shows where I am at with the glaze. It has a lot of color variation, most notable hues of greens and blues with some small texture running throughout the glaze for good measure. The glaze respond well to the textures created by the slip and I am looking forward to it possibly creating an even richer quality as it dips in to the recesses of the combing. I'll keep you posted, same pottery time, same pottery channel, more or less.

AT HOME

Back in 1985 I visited the exhibition; THE WAY OF TEA; AMERICAN ART FOR THE JAPANESE TEA CEREMONY, this was to be my first encounter with chadogu made by Westerners in an earnest fashion and not simply as imitators or copyists. The works were an insight as to how a group of American craftsman and artists saw and interpreted the objects that they studied and admired capturing the essence but not necessarily tied to absolute tradition. Since that time, I have encountered quite a few people whose works are inspired by Chanoyu and these individuals are from all over the globe creating works based on Japanese originals but they are a unique blend of the archetype and the individual. The illustrated Hagi tebachi is just such an object created by Scandinavian transplant and Hagi native; Bertil Nils Persson.  Bertil Nils Persson was born in Sweden in 1940 and ended up working for Royal Copenhagen in Denmark prior to a trip he made to Japan. Once in Japan he began a seven year apprenticeship in Hagi and has been at home there ever since. Highly admired for his decorative and functional work, Persson is considered one of the most popular potters in Hagi and has even received the Distinguished Cultural Service Award (2002) for Hagi City for his efforts to preserve and contribute to the Hagi tradition. I find this to be one of those wonderful vessels that synthesizes the Scandinavian and Japanese traditions effortlessly to make an individual work that is neither a copy nor a simple imitation.

You can see more of this Hagi tebachi over at my Trocadero marketplace by clicking on the link;

http://www.trocadero.com/stores/albedo3studio/items/1308162/item1308162store.html

LAWS OF ATTRACTION

As I look at the works of Kawai Kanjiro, I can immediately see the pottery laws of attraction at play. His works have a simplicity and grace while his forms are strong and compelling finished with rich, honest and spontaneous glazes and decoration. It is very easy to understand the appeal of such work which in many cases translates to his two dimensional renderings just like this simple ink wash of a simple decanter and stopper with elegant and captivating decoration on the two visible sides of the pot. The image is portrayed to create depth and take full advantage of the form which it depicts looking just like it can be picked up and used. Balancing a certain degree of brevity with the essentials of the pot through ink, Kawai captures the essence of the vessel with the least amount of detail and effort much like he does with the impressive and diverse body of work he has graced us with.

LEAN & GREEN

Illustrated are two lean and green citadel style vases with paddled textures and an Oribe glaze with iron accents. I had posted these two vases in a previous blog post and thought to show what the pieces came out like after the firing. I  combined two of my favorite pottery making things on these pots; texture and Oribe and would like to think that the relationship they share works to full advantage with some iron going along for the ride. Both of these pots were fired on wads to keep them from sticking to the kiln shelves and I must say I am particularly surprised that given their vertical nature, the glaze did not run off the pots. I will never get used to things coming out just as I saw them in my head, nor will I start to make those assumptions and become an optimist but it is always a good day to unload the kiln when they do.

"An optimist is a man who has never had much experience." Don Marquis (1878-1937)

PAPER, PLASTIC OR SHIFUKU

I am always amazed at the presentation that many Japanese artists make out of the packaging or their artwork, though simple in concept, they rarely are in execution. In order to enjoy the object, you must first peel away the layers of packaging to see the piece and for pots that can include multiple boxes and an elaborate shifuku even when the piece is not a chaire. I would hazard a guess that 85% of the exhibition quality pieces by Tsukigata Nahiko have at the very least a shifuku for the pot and quite a few also have a secondary box in either roiro black lacquer or plain kiri wood. Besides the silk shifuku, some or Tsukigata's pots come with a thick, quilted, padded wrapping cloth which bares his personal stamp, I have seen this for a number of his larger vases, tsubo and mizusashi and on the rare occassion with chawan as well. The illustration shows a custom made and fitted shifuku for a large mizusashi by Tsukigata made out of cloth which a number of his shifuku were made out of. Peaking out from the slit down the center, you can glimpse the crusty ash built up on the face of the pot attesting to the fact that Tsukigata knew how to present his pots so that they would always make an impressive entrance.