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Category: Ceramics

That Delicious Steam

February 4, 2022Ceramics Tokoname Yamada Yutaro

Tokoname clay teapots by Yamada Yutaro in our shop->

Tokoname flat kyusu and hohin teapots by Yamada Yutaro

Tea consumption goes up 5 fold during the winter in my house. Hot tea for warmth is only part of the reason, because I’m also in pursuit of the delicious steam during these coldest months of the year. 
New Tokoname teapots by Yamada Yutaro for your tea and steam in Entoten shop today.

Tokoname teacup and teapot by Yamada Yutaro

The Unfolding: Ceramics by Takahashi Nami

October 14, 2021Ceramics Takahashi Nami

Ceramics by Takahashi Nami in our shop ->

A flower bud yet to open is more desirable to display in a Japanese tearoom than one already in bloom. When a camellia in a vase opened too quickly during practice, my tea teacher exclaimed, “it was closed half an hour ago but it’s already open!”

I find that it is uniquely Japanese to prefer a bud holding its potential within over the prominent display of a blossom in its prime. Ceramic artist Takahashi Nami’s work is an expression of this distinct Japanese aesthetic.

Porcelain vase by Japanese ceramic artist Takahashi Nami. The Japanese prefer displaying a bud holding its potential within than over the prominent display of a blossom in its prime.

“I’m strongly attracted to the beautiful lines and forms of seeds, fruits, and flower buds found in nature,” Nami said, when I asked her about what inspires her work. Nami’s work is created using slip molds by casting plaster models in a ceramics technique called slip casting. “The forms and lines are of utmost importance in my work,” Nami continued, “and slip casting is best suited to create the desired forms and lines in porcelain.”

Nami grew up in Tokyo and vaguely wanted to become an artist at a very young age because she loved drawing. In 7th grade, her art teacher introduced her to ceramics when she became infatuated with clay and decided that she wanted to work as a ceramic artist in the future. She chose to attend Musashino Art University Junior College of Art and Design in Tokyo to study ceramics.

Takahashi Nami’s porcelain vases are asymmetrical from all angles. Each piece is slip cast, and a fretsaw is used to remove excess clay on the surface while it is still leather hard. When they are dry, Nami uses boxcutter blades and sandpaper to smooth out the surfaces and sharpen the edges before bisque firing.

After graduating in 1997, Nami continued to study ceramic sculpture at the National School of Ceramic Art (Istituto Statale d’Arte per la Ceramica) in Faenza, Italy, for two years. “In the Japanese university I mostly learned to make tableware, but I was always interested in ceramic sculptures, so I decided to go to Italy,” she said. She made terracotta sculptures because she liked the clay’s texture and tones. “The colorful and unique forms and free expressions of Italian ceramics was so interesting,” she recalls.

Nami was also exposed to exhibits of prominent Japanese contemporary ceramic artists at the International Museum of Ceramics, which was right next door to her school in Faenza. She saw works by Raku Kichizaemon XV (Jikinyu) and Fukami Sueharu. “Seeing the work of Japanese ceramic artists while studying abroad made me realize the exceptional quality of Japanese ceramics,” Nami said. So after finishing her course in Faenza, Nami decided to return to Japan to establish her studio.

In Japan, Nami started working with porcelain because she had a yearning to work with white clay. She initially made sculptural installations for art galleries, but soon began creating tableware at the request of other galleries. “I made sculptures and tableware but avoided making teaware and tea bowls,” Nami recalls, “because I felt they were very noble types of wares, with many rules, and I was very afraid that people would be critical.”

A kiln loaded with tableware and shelves with slip molds in the ceramic studio of Takahashi Nami 
Photo courtesy of Takahashi Nami

But that all changed when Hayashiya Seizo (1928-2017) –the best description of Hayashiya’s work is to use Google translate on this page–a prominent tea master, ceramics expert, and former curator of Tokyo National Museum, became interested in Nami’s work and encouraged her to make tea bowls. Since then, Nami has been working to develop larger vessels for the tearoom while receiving advice from other tea masters.

This development in Nami’s work led to numerous accolades. In 2016, she was selected as The Best New Artist at the 63rd Japan Kogei Crafts Exhibition, and in 2018 was awarded Grand Prize at the 11th Tea Ceramics Exhibition at the Toki City Cultural Promotion Foundation. “To be encouraged by an expert like Hayashiya Sensei was a huge push forward,” Nami explained about her jump into tea ceramics. Through Hayashiya, Nami had the chance to hold some of the most famous historic tea bowls, including Muichimotsu by Raku Chojiro. Hayashiya encouraged Nami to see and touch teaware, insisting that they can only be understood by holding them by hand.

Porcelain tea container by Takahashi Nami

And the most surprising aspect of Nami’s work is the warmth of the matte porcelain with sculptural and crisp lines. “I borrow the capacity of soft white clay to express beauty found in nature,” Nami explained about the power of her material. Her work opened my eyes to the unexpected ability of porcelain to capture the tenderness of a budding flower. When you hold her work in your hands, I guarantee that you will be filled with anticipation for them to unfold.

A close up of a sake pourer and cups by Takahashi Nami

Thank You for Coming to The Den to Meet Potter Kazu Oba

September 7, 2021Events, Workshops and Webinars Ceramics Kazu Oba

Entoten’s craft pop-up at The Den on Laurel Street over Labor Day weekend was a huge success! Thank you for taking the time to come and meet Kazu and to support his work. For those of you who couldn’t make it, here are some photos of the event, taken by our friend Tomoko Matsubayashi.

I hope to organize another pop-up event at the Den this December, so look forward to seeing you then.

 

 


A Unifying Respect: New Ceramics by Mitch Iburg

August 9, 2021Ceramics Mitch Iburg

Ceramics by Mitch Iburg in our shop ->

Minnesota-based potter Mitch Iburg’s latest collection of work is quiet, with simple forms and surfaces. The work reminded me of the unglazed and mostly undecorated Yayoi period pottery in Japan’s ancient history, an era generally accepted to be between 300 BCE and 300 CE.  When I told him this, Mitch reminisced about the time we first connected in 2014 and said, “[back then] my interest was more in the very aggressive and bold wood fire surfaces.”

Ceramics by Mitch Iburg made in 2021 with foraged Minnesota clay, sand, and minerals.
Wood fired Tokkuri made by Mitch Iburg in 2014, when Mitch was more interested in melted ash deposits on wood-fired work

I enjoy looking at Yayoi pottery. Whenever I visit Tokyo’s National Museum, I’m one of the few visitors pottering around in the dark and deserted first floor of the museum’s Heiseikan wing where there is a chronologically arranged exhibition of Japanese archeology. I have often wondered what caused the drastic change in the style of pottery from Jomon (14000-300 BCE), which was highly decorated with ostentatious forms, to Yayoi that is very minimal and often with no decorations.

Stem cup from the Yayoi period ca. 100–300 H. 4 3/4 in. (12.1 cm) D. 3 7/16 in. (8.8 cm) Earthenware
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

“After firing in mostly electric kilns for a few years I get much more joy from the simple qualities of the natural clay,” Mitch explained. “Much of the historical work I find myself drawn to these days has a similar quality.” The Minneapolis Institute of Art has a collection of Chinese Han dynasty vessels, Korean Silla ware, African vessels, and several works from the Jomon and Yayoi periods, and Mitch says he discovers something new from them every time he visits the museum.

Tokkuri with Kaolinitic clay finish by Mitch Iburg, 2021

After learning what inspires Mitch, I realized that the draw of Mitch’s work and Yayoi pottery is the unspoken respect for the character of the surface. Mitch evolved to prefer the natural beauty of the exterior without obscuring it with ash, and perhaps the Yayoi people grew to enjoy the clay surface without decorations. Regardless of the era and background, people can identify simple, unpretentious beauty. And we can all share our fascination for the Earth and its history.

Shudei by Yamada Yutaro: The Bona Fide Red Teapot

July 21, 2021Ceramics Yamada Yutaro

Kyusu by Yamada Yutaro in our shop->

While many red or shudei teapots are created using clay mixed with manufactured red iron oxide these days, the teapots of Yamada Yutaro are made using clay rich in iron dug out over half a century ago from under the rice paddy fields near Tokoname in Central Japan.

Shudei Hohin (teapot with no handle) by Yamada Yutaro of Tokoname, Japan
Black and Shudei Kyusu teapot by Yamada Yutaro

“I found out that back in the day, the best red clay was found in the paddy fields of neighboring towns like Kaminoma and Kowa,” Yutaro said. ‘Back in the day’ refers to the time when the famous Chinese tea pot maker Jin Shiheng arrived in Tokoname from Yixing in China in 1858 to teach local potters.

When I was growing up in the 1970s, most households in Japan owned a ceramic Kyusu teapot and a great majority of them were red. I still fondly remember sipping tea brewed in a vermillion teapot sitting around a heated table watching sumo with my grandparents. Owning a Kyusu teapot must have been a tradition dating all the way back to Jin’s arrival in Meiji Japan. Sadly, this is no longer the case in Japan where many people today get their tea from vending machines.

Paddy rock inherited from a local pottery that was excavated half a century ago.
Photo courtesy of Yamada Yutaro
This rock will eventually be processed into shudei clay
Photo courtesy of Yamada Yutaro

To make his shudei clay, Yutaro processes dried rock inherited from a now defunct local pottery. Preparing the clay is a physically demanding and time-consuming process, but as with everything else in craft, being uncompromising is often the best way to making good work.

Processed Shudei clay
Photo courtesy of Yamada Yutaro

I’ll leave it to the tea aficionados and scientists to judge if a shudei tea pot actually makes the tea taste sweeter and mellower as is reputed. But the fact is that the shudei ware made by Yamada Yutaro is not just about the looks. His teapots are made using carefully selected material with due process and attention that has been practiced and refined over the centuries by numerous generations of potters. I hope that Yutaro’s beautiful and painstakingly prepared work will entice more people to enjoy tea brewed in a teapot instead of coming from a plastic bottle.

 

EN -Circle-
Kazu Oba in San Diego September 4 & 5, 2021

July 18, 2021Events, Workshops and Webinars Ceramics Kazu Oba

Ceramics by Kazu Oba in our shop ->

How does September in sun-drenched San Diego sound? If you love the beaches, nature, and craft, this coming Labor Day weekend might be the perfect time to come and enjoy our laid back city when Entoten will host potter Kazu Oba from Colorado for an outdoor pop-up event at The Den on Laurel Street.

For the past 17 years, Kazu has dedicated his work to making functional, everyday ware used for food at home and at restaurants. Come and meet Kazu during the event, when he will share with you his passion for creating handmade ceramics for your table.

Kazu Oba throwing pots on a portable kick-wheel in La Jolla, San Diego, in November 2017

Saturday & Sunday, September 4 & 5, 2021
11am-5pm
at The Den on Laurel Street
(Click to launch Google Maps)
205 Laurel St. #104
San Diego CA 92101

Other work featured during the pop-up event includes:-
– Bamboo Baskets by Takami Yasuhiro
– Glasswork by Floresta Fabrica
– Tenugui by Harada Fumiko
– Chasen tea whisks by Tanimura Tango

In addition, a short stroll from the Den is the Mingei International Museum, the only Mingei museum outside of Japan, located inside the world famous Balboa Park. The Mingei will complete an ambitious three-year renovation and reopen to the public on September 3rd, and entry into the Museum will be free for all during the Labor Day Weekend. So come to San Diego and join our weekend celebration of craft!

 

 

Oribe Coffee Pour Over Sets by Kuriya Masakatsu at Bay Park Coffee in San Diego

July 5, 2021Ceramics Kuriya Masakatsu

Coffee Pour Over Sets and Cups by Kuriya Masakatsu in our shop->

I drink coffee every morning and to prepare it, I use a ceramic pour over set by Mashiko potter Kuriya Masakatsu. The dripper fits the paper filter (v60 #1&2 Hario) perfectly, and the pitcher’s long pointed spout pours beautifully into any handmade cup. They are ideal for me and maybe for you too, so I am very happy to share Kuriya-san’s Oribe work in my online shop for the first time in 8 years.

Oribe coffee pour over set by Mashiko potter, Kuriya Masakatsu
Elegant and bold Oribe glaze by Kuriya Masakatsu

Many of you said that the Entoten pop-up event in June in Banker’s Hill was a great opportunity to see and touch craft in person after I closed my small gallery at the height of the Covid Pandemic in 2020.  I wanted to find a place where people can see Kuriya san’s work in person, so I asked Ryosuke Goto, the owner of Bay Park Coffee, if he could let me borrow a small corner inside his shop to display Kuriya-san’s work, and he kindly agreed!

The display shelf and a cup of cortado at Bay Park Coffee in San Diego

Bay Park Coffee is a popular local coffee shop only a few minutes away by car from my house. Ryosuke took over the ownership of the shop in 2018 after running a coffee stand inside a county office building for 4 years. It is a laid back and friendly coffee shop where Ryosuke and his staff takes the time and care to talk to you and get to know you.  “I want Bay Park Coffee to be a place for people to gather and meet, a hub of new encounters and beginnings,” he says. Ryosuke also loves music and tea and hopes to collaborate with musicians and tea farmers by hosting them at Bay Park Coffee in the future.

Ryosuke working behind the counter at Bay Park Coffee

So please stop by at Bay Park Coffee, have a cup of your favorite espresso drink pulled from their beautiful La Marzocco machine by their attentive staff, and see and hold Kuriya san’s work in person. The human aspect is the key ingredient for a good cup of coffee, don’t you agree?

While you drive down Morena Blvd., look out for the new trolley stations that are almost finished for San Diego’s Mid-Coast Trolley Extension.  I’m surprised that hardly anyone around me talks about the trolley, but I’m excited, because coming from Tokyo, I love being on public transportation to gaze out the windows, people watch, and read as I go places.  In November, the trolley extension will finally open and I will definitely take it to enjoy our newly connected community and get a cup of cortado from Bay Park Coffee.

Coffee Pour Over Sets and Cups by Kuriya Masakatsu will be available July 5th (Mon)-18th (Sun) 2021 at Bay Park Coffee: 4130 Napier St, San Diego, CA 92110 (Click for Google Maps)

Small Drinking Vessels and Refills: Please Let Me Pour More

March 29, 2021Ceramics Kazu Oba Food and Craft

Ceramics by Kazu Oba in our shop ->

I get so excited to hear from people that they have been vaccinated for Covid-19. It feels truly good to be on the offensive against this virus! And as I patiently await my turn for the jab(s), which should come soon, I’m starting to look forward to sitting around the table with my friends again.

And when I sit down to have tea, coffee, even water and adult beverages, I like to use small cups and mugs. Sure, it’s always good to have less things to wash afterwards, but I like to give my guests small drinking vessels so that I can bring a pitcher or spouted bowls with refills.

Little cups allow the host to offer a fresh batch of hot coffee to the guests

Why bother, you may ask. It is because little cups allow me to offer a fresh batch of hot or cold drinks to my guests. In addition, there is something very pleasant and soothing about watching and hearing liquid being poured into vessels don’t you think? I consider it as part of the entertainment to the guests. I’m sure the Victorians could have made tea in huge mugs as well, but they too must have felt that the act of pouring adds another layer to the tea experience.

It is pleasant and soothing to watch and hear liquid (in this case matcha) being poured into vessels.

If you ever wondered why there are so many small cups in my shop, now you know the reason. And today I’ve added even more small cups and pouring vessels by Kazu Oba to my shop. As always, Kazu’s spouts are perfectly executed so that there won’t be any drips left on your table. I hope that you’ll find the perfect vessel to add a little more pouring for your next gathering in the coming post-Covid world.

Playful and Soulful: New Kutaniyaki by Horihata Ran

September 28, 2020Ceramics Horihata Ran

Kutaniyaki by Horihata Ran in our Shop ->

People often ask how I select makers for Entoten, and the short answer is that those chosen make work that I react to emotionally. To put it another way, ‘what they make me feel’ is more important than ‘how they look.’

For Kutani potter Horihata Ran, I fell in love with her whimsical work after coming across it at a department store in Tokyo in 2019. Her work was shown in a section featuring young and upcoming makers, and I was extremely moved by her soulful brush strokes.

Homemade Japanese sweets on iroe square plates by Horihata Ran. Tea practitioners often make their own sweets to serve to guests at a tea gathering. It is another way to infuse the host’s hospitality into the occasion and the offerings are enhanced by handmade plates like Ran’s Kutaniyaki.

 

Kutani Iroe square plates with diamond decoration by Horihata Ran. Uneven pattern edges resemble a torn brocade.

 

After Ran’s work was introduced for the first time by Entoten in the U.S. last December, many people inquired about her one of a kind pieces. So this time, I requested mostly one-off pieces because I was also intrigued by what she would come up with.

“When I saw that my larger pieces were quickly chosen by people in America, I thought, wow American people are so dynamic,” Ran said excitedly, “so for this batch, I wanted to create pieces that I’ve always dreamed of making.” And with that enthusiasm, Ran worked on her pieces and sent a trove of lovely work this summer.

Ran wanted to make a jar inspired by the celebrated Korean jars from the Joseon era, but realized she needed much more skill and research to even remotely resemble them. So she took her brush and put everything she had into painting lively flowers. “I think in that sense, I’ve created something that I can only create once in my lifetime,” Ran said.

 

Lidded Kutani akae jar. Ran excels and loves to make lidded jars even though it entails many steps in the making. “The lid and body are thrown separately and trimmed to fit together. When the lid fits perfectly after firing, I feel great satisfaction,” Ran said.

 

Figs on a Sometsuke pedestal plate by Horihata Ran.  She wanted to create pedestal plates that she visualized on American dining tables alongside candles and flowers.

 

Unpacking Ran’s work was especially poignant for me because it has been many months since I received a ceramics shipment from Japan because the pandemic had curtailed freight services. I hope that Ran’s cheerful work will remind you to play often and to keep your downtrodden souls in check, just like they did for me.

The Intrinsic Value of Crafts: New Ceramics by Kazu Oba

August 16, 2020Ceramics Kazu Oba

Ceramics by Kazu Oba in our shop ->

When Colorado potter Kazu Oba and his wife Yuka visited San Diego to install his show at the Japanese Friendship Garden in November 2017, I invited them to stay at my house. For a few nights, we shared simple meals using some good pots and talked about pots. It was great fun. One night, he told a story that stuck with me that I would like to share.

Kazu Oba throwing pots on a portable wheel at La Jolla Shores, November 2017

Kazu belonged to a potter’s group in Colorado several years earlier, and one night he attended one of its gatherings. “When I arrived, there were drinks served in plastic cups and paper plates for the food. I was so shocked and I said, come on, we’re potters!” Kazu said. Several people explained that they used these disposable wares because they didn’t want to create a burden for someone to wash up afterwards. So Kazu offered to be the dishwasher. They further responded that there was nowhere to store the plates and cups. “I said, if we can’t even bother to use what we make, then who would?” So Kazu left the group.

Komatsuna salad in a small shinogi celadon bowl by Kazu Oba

Kazu became a potter because he worked in a restaurant as a cook for many years but wasn’t satisfied with the vessels that were commercially available. So apart from making pots to sell, he creates vessels for restaurants, such as Ramen Star in Denver. The owner of Ramen Star, Takashi Tamai, is equally passionate about the quality of the Ramen he serves. If you are an ardent chef considering handmade pots for use at your restaurant, Kazu would be perfect for you.

Saiko Star Ramen by Ramen Star in Colorado
Photo Courtesy of Ramen Star-in Denver Colorado

I focus on finding well-made handcrafted items for use at Entoten, because when people understand the intrinsic value of crafts, a distinctive taste is developed that will strengthen the Crafts Culture. This culture is about being thoughtful of a lot of things: our history, traditions, quality of life, environment, sustainability, and spirituality to name a few. But Crafts Culture is not built by crafts people alone. We the users also bring our passion, knowledge, and experience to infuse into their values.

Sweet Kanto style rolled egg omelet (tamagoyaki) on Karake plate by Kazu Oba. Kazu created kawarake plates to represent simple ceramic plates created in great numbers during the Middle Ages as offerings to the gods.

When I think about Kazu’s infamous plastic cups and paper plates episode, I chuckle because it must have created quite a stir among the potters. Kazu said a few agreed with him. But I also feel lucky to be able to work with Kazu who is so passionate about making and using handmade pots. By doing so, he is playing an invaluable part in nurturing the culture of caring.

Kazu Oba is having a Summer Sale by appointment from August 30-Sept 6, 2020 at his studio in Lafayette, Colorado.

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