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Recent Posts

  • The Genius of Unusual Methods: Glass Art by Ishida Tami January 14, 2021
  • Kishu Urushi by Hashizume Yasuo and Reiko: Unfeigned Expressions in an Ancient Craft October 23, 2020
  • Playful and Soulful: New Kutaniyaki by Horihata Ran September 28, 2020
  • The Intrinsic Value of Crafts: New Ceramics by Kazu Oba August 16, 2020
  • Tea is Always a Good Idea: New Kyusu by Yamada Yutaro August 2, 2020

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Category: People

The Genius of Unusual Methods: Glass Art by Ishida Tami

January 14, 2021Glass Ishida Tami

Glass Vessels by Ishida Tami in our shop ->

When I saw Japanese glassmaker Ishida Tami’s work, I immediately thought of eggshells in a dazzling array of colors laid by exotic birds hidden deep in a forest that had yet to be discovered. Her gorgeous work invites self-reflection and quiet contemplation, like watching the sky gradually change its color in the early morning before sunrise.

Glass vessels by Japanese glassmaker Ishida Tami

“They are glass, but I want them to appear like ceramics, lacquerware, and even pebbles,” Tami explains.  “I am very particular about the texture and colors of the surface.” Tami enjoys creating work that fits in the palm of a hand and pays special attention to how the surface feels when they are touched.

Glassmaker Ishida Tami likes to make objects that fit in the palm of a hand and pays special attention to their touch

Initially, I thought Tami’s work looked like pate de verre, a type of glasswork that is made by filling powdered glass pastes into a mold. But her vessels carry a lightness that is not typical to pate de verre because they are actually blown glass with layer upon layer of powdered glass coatings that are cut and intensely polished on the surface. Her work is a mind-bogglingly time-consuming process, and I was curious to find out why Tami decided to create her work in this elaborate manner.

Ishida Tami blowing a gray color base vessel coated with ivory colored powdered glass.
Photo courtesy of Ishida Tami

Tami was born in Okayama prefecture, home to the famous local Bizen pottery that are usually unglazed and fired with wood. She studied ceramics in high school, but the austere Bizen pottery seemed dark to her young eyes, and she became more interested in glazed pottery. Later when she discovered that a new university, the Kurashiki University of Science and the Arts, was opening in 1995, she thought glass “seemed even more beautiful than glazed pottery.” So she decided to study glasswork.

The blobs of glass are cut after cooling and the bottoms are then polished into vessels.
Photo courtesy of Ishida Tami

But it was only after Tami started researching and creating replicas of ancient glasswork after graduation that she became fascinated by glass. Her graduate thesis was a work based on a historic Persian cut glass vessel in the collection of Okayama Orient Museum. She later enrolled in the Masters of Glass program at the University for the Creative Arts at Farnham in England and proceeded to extensively study Sasanian and Islamic glasswork. In 2013, Tami received the honor of being invited to create a replica of a Sasanian Cut Bowl for the British Museum.  In 2015, Tami won first prize in the prestigious Stanislav Libensky Award given out by the Czech Republic that provided her the opportunity to spend three weeks at the Pilchuck Glass School in Washington state.

“Ancient glassmakers created work through mysterious methods and techniques,” Tami pointed out. “And this is because they were still working their way to discovering more efficient ways to make things, but with limited tools and fuels.” It was the ingenuity of these long-gone glassmakers that Tami felt a deep love and attraction for and has become the driving force of her creations.

Glassworker Ishida Tami’s self-adapted coldworking tool.  She changes the wheel to cut and polish the vessels into the final form.
Photos courtesy of Ishida Tami

After Tami lost her teacher in a tragic accident three years ago, she has not been able to get back into her research of ancient glass and creating cut glass vessels. But through the study of Sasanian glasswork, Tami has accumulated extensive knowledge in cutting and polishing glass (click here to watch a YouTube video of former curator of Corning Museum of Glass, David Whitehouse describe a Sasanian cup with high quality glass cutting).  Through experimentation, she discovered that a distinctly beautiful texture and effect of graduating colors can be achieved by coldworking pieces that are blown and coated with powdered glass.

Tami admits that, “it is like taking the very long way home to create glasswork with the presumption that it will be coldworked to finish the form.” But this unusual method is the very reason why her work is so unique.

Glass vessels by Ishida Tami that resemble eggshells in a dazzling array of colors.

In a world where efficiency is prized, we sometimes forget that the process still makes the biggest difference to the end result. Tami’s work reminds us that the key for making objects that goes straight to the heart is not just about employing state-of-the-art equipment but is also about taking the time and trouble to convey the fascination for the material.

Kishu Urushi by Hashizume Yasuo and Reiko: Unfeigned Expressions in an Ancient Craft

October 23, 2020Kuroe Hashizume Reiko Hashizume Yasuo Urushi

Urushi by Hashizume Yasuo and Reiko in our shop ->

I have always been enamored by negoro-nuri. It is a much sought-after antique urushiware that was originally produced by the monks from Negoro-ji temple in Wakayama prefecture beginning in the 12th Century. In negoro-nuri, the monks made their own utensils by applying many layers of black urushi onto the wood base that was followed by a top-coat of red urushi. The vermillion color has a distinctive depth because of the dark layers underneath, and as the surface becomes polished with use, the black is gradually revealed. It is a unique kind of ‘aged-dignification’ that the Japanese have grown to admire in their crafts.

Negoro-nuri bowl by Hashizume Yasuo. These days you can find many negoro-nuri style urushi that are already polished to deliberately show the black, but Hashizume Yasuo makes them just as the monks at Negoro-ji did centuries ago

This January just before the pandemic closed down the world, I visited urushi artisans Hashizume Yasuo and his daughter Reiko in the town of Kuroe in Wakayama prefecture. Kuroe is known for the local Kishu urushiware that began during the Muromachi period (1336 to 1573) as a center of shibujiwan -a simple wooden bowl coated with persimmon tannin. A key reason behind Kuroe’s emergence as a thriving urushiware center was its access to an abundant local supply of wood.

Kishu remains as one of the three largest lacquerware producing areas in Japan, the others being Aizu in Fukushima prefecture and Yamanaka/Wajima in Ishikawa prefecture. The Hashizume family has been working with urushi for 4 generations spanning over 140 years.

Urushi artist Hashizume Yasuo at his studio in Kuroe, Wakayama
Photo courtesy of Urushikobo Hashizume

The father, Yasuo-san, specializes in urushi work in splendid maki-e, and also in negoro-nuri. Maki-e is an elaborate and meticulous technique for applying designs onto the urushi surface. Designs are made with precious materials like powdered gold and silver, or inlaid with a variety of decorations like mother-of-pearl and even eggshells. He has won numerous awards for his work during his career covering over 6 decades.

In maki-e, gold dust is flicked onto wet urushi using a tube. it is then coated with a layer of urushi and polished to reveal the gold. Charcoal or deer antler powder is traditionally used as a polishing agent. Egg-shells are also used as maki-e decorations.

Reiko has also been working with urushi for over 20 years. After studying at Tsukuba University of Art and Design, she worked as a designer for several years in Tokyo before returning to Kuroe. “I didn’t plan on making urushi my lifework,” she said, “but when I came back to Kuroe, I wanted to work with it since this is the perfect place to do so.”

For tea utensils, many traditional urushi artisans stick to conventional motifs that are easy to sell by often copying or referencing old designs, but Reiko creates maki-e with original contemporary designs with an eye for surprising motifs. When I asked why she chose humble chickweed and asters as subjects for the tea containers, she said “I often see chickweed and asters growing around me, so I wanted to draw them.” I found her pure artistic motivation for choosing her subject very refreshing and persuasive.

Natsume matcha tea container by Hashizume Reiko with maki-e of chickweed in gold and tinted urushi

At the studio, Yasuo-san showed me many different types of brushes that he uses, including a wide hake brush that is made from bound human hair and wood. Like a pencil, when the bristle gets frayed on the brush, the wood can be cut to reveal fresh bristle underneath. “The brush is one of the most important tools for making urushiware,” he pointed out. All the brushes were kept in beautiful condition, which is a reflection of the care that he puts into his work.

Hashizume Yasuo’s collection of urushi brushes

Urushi is a resin extracted from toxicodendron vernicifluum trees that originally came from China, and it has similar allergenic properties as poison oak and poison ivy. But when urushi hardens, it becomes so strong that it resists heat and also acids and alkalis. Urushi artifacts can be found from the Jomon period over 9,000 years ago, which shows how far back they go.

A display showing various steps in creating negoro-nuri urushiware. Before each urushi application, the surface needs to be polished and urushi needs to be filtered. It takes several months to create a single negoro-nuri ware.

But out of many traditional crafts that exist in Japan, daily wares with natural urushi disappeared most rapidly from homes in the last few decades. “After the Second World War, many local people converted to making ‘gosei shikki (synthetic lacquerware)’ which is not urushi but synthesized cashew lacquer or plastic”, Reiko explained as we strolled the streets of Kuroe.

Recent arrival of cheap imported melamine wares further impacted the industry, and because many shops carry a mix of real urushi and other lacquer using different kinds of bases including wood, engineered wood, or plastic, what a ‘lacquerware’ is made of is very unclear and confusing. I once purchased a wood bowl coated with plastic because the shop attendant told me it was ‘shikki’ which means ‘lacquerware.’ I don’t think he was trying to deceive me, but he simply did not know. I understand that there is a place for plastic in this world, but since its widespread use is now causing so many environmental problems, I try not to purchase them if I can.

“How can you tell the difference between plastic and real urushi?” I asked Reiko, “It is very hard to tell the difference. Almost impossible at first glance”, she replied.

Sadly, the word ‘shikki,’ has become such a confusing terminology. If you watch a Ted talk by Murose Kazumi, the Japanese Living National Treasure of urushi art, you will further understand this sentiment.

Over the years, Japan has almost lost all of its capacity to produce its own urushi and today a staggering 97% of natural urushi used in Japan is imported from China.

An old urushi artisan’s house in Kuroe. The houses were built at an angle to the road to accommodate parking for a cart that transported wares in various stages of production.

As we strolled the sleepy town, I imagined how bustling it was at the height of the urushi boom with carts piled with wares being transported down to the river. “It must be so green and beautiful in the summer” I said. “Yes, it gets so hot and humid!” Reiko exclaimed.

How perfect then that urushi, a natural resin that hardens only when there is sufficient humidity and the temperature is above a certain level, flourished in Japan. But it is unfortunate that the urushi culture has declined so much over the years.

An announcement from the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs that it would only allow use of domestically produced urushi for the restoration of buildings designated as national treasures from 2018 caused a severe price hike and shortage of domestic urushi for artists like the Hashizumes. To keep the items affordable while maintaining their quality, their urushi items are created by using high-quality urushi from China for the base coats, then using Japanese urushi on top layers. “Japanese urushi‘s color is more transparent and its gloss is very beautiful,” Reiko observed. Under current circumstances though, they cannot acquire enough to make their work using only Japanese urushi.

Urushi furo. A special closet to dry the urushi. The curtain is soaked in water and hung behind the door to create humidity

It will take a considerable amount of time to increase urushi production back to a sufficient level to bring down the price of urushi items for daily use. But an important first step is for people to re-appreciate natural urushi in the items they use everyday, and to become aware of the differences with other lacquerware. Natural urushi ages beautifully, and the wares can be re-coated to be used over many years.

In purchasing urushi work, it is important to nurture connections with shops or craftspeople with integrity, so that the correct information is conveyed. I’m encouraged to see the activities of non-profits like Urushinext, whose mission is to increase the local production of urushi and promote every aspect of this craft to the outside world. The efforts to increase domestic production is not about the differences in the quality of imported vs. domestic urushi as such, but more about preserving the Japanese urushi crafts culture as a whole.

Urushi tea scoop by Hashizume Reiko.

Reiko and I had lunch at a local coffee shop started by a young couple in a converted old urushi factory building. We then visited Jokokuji Temple where Yasuo san created brilliant maki-e tiles to be installed onto the ceiling over a 4-year period. After admiring them for a while sitting on the tatami floor, we strolled down the hill. Then I caught a taxi and hopped on the train that took me back to the bustling city of Osaka, thinking about the future of urushi along the way.

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.

Tea is Always a Good Idea: New Kyusu by Yamada Yutaro

August 2, 2020Ceramics Tokoname Yamada Yutaro

Tokoname Kyusu by Yamada Yutaro in Our Shop August 3rd->

I am far from alone in wrongly anticipating that the Covid pandemic by now would be under control and I would be planning a summer trip somewhere. But with all the indices here in the U.S. going in the wrong direction, we are stuck at home for the foreseeable future.

One good piece of news arrived recently in the form of a box from Japan that I had shipped months ago early in the pandemic but that got stuck in the Japanese postal system. In the box were Kyusu tea pots by Yamada Yutaro that I had hoped to release in my online shop before the arrival of this year’s new Japanese tea crop in June.

Tokoname flat Kyusu by Yamada Yutaro with mogake markings
The seaweed used for creating the mogake markings on the Kyusu is collected along the coast of Tokoname.

That June date has long past and I read in the news that the long rainy season that tormented Japan this year is also finally over. The humid hot summer has officially started and this is also the beginning of the toughest work environment for many craftspeople in Japan. I remember Yutaro san telling me that in the summer, he sleeps during the day and works at night because the heat in his studio reaches over 100 degrees every day. He is constantly battling with mosquitoes because he has many containers of standing water for making clays lying around in the studio.

Kyusu maker Yamada Yutaro’s studio in Tokoname, Japan
Tokoname Kyusu before firing. Yamada san makes his own clay.
Tokoname clay made by Yamada Yutaro
Tubs carrying clay and water around Yutaro’s studio -a mosquito’s paradise.

When I reported the good news of his pots’ delivery, Yutaro san said, “I’m glad they arrived safely. I hope that we can encourage people to have tea and enjoy using tea wares even more often since we’re all staying at home.” I chuckled because I’ve never heard of anyone as young as him (only 28 years old) talk about making tea at home.

In a stressful time, tea is always a good idea, and I’m happy to be able to share Yutaro san’s passion and thoughtful work during this time. I drink more tea now than ever, because tea time has become an important ritual for both my husband and I to take a break from work at home. So put on the kettle and join me and Yutaro san for tea.

Tokoname Kyusu and Yunomi by Yamada Yutaro

Entoten Tea Whisk Zoom Webinar with Tanimura Tango: Everything About Bamboo Tea Whisks

July 20, 2020Workshops and Webinars Tanimura Tango

Entoten will be hosting a fun evening webinar with Tanimura Tango, 20th generation master tea whisk maker based in Nara, Japan.

In this 90 minute webinar that will be conducted in Japanese with English translation, participants will learn about the history of bamboo tea whisks, its material, types, and how they are made. There will be a Q&A session with Tanimura-san after the presentation.

Please register by purchasing a spot online.

A Group of Takayama Chasen is added to the collection of San Diego’s Mingei International Museum

July 12, 2020Mingei Tea Tanimura Tango

Takayama chasen by Tanimura Tango in our shop ->

Entoten is delighted to announce that the Mingei International Museum in San Diego has recently acquired a group of Takayama Chasen (tea whisks) by Tanimura Tango for its collection. This is ground-breaking because the story of the humble bamboo whisk, is hardly ever told in other museums, where much of the focus is given to the tea bowls and other utensils. But without the chasen, there will be no matcha nor other utensils, be it in your home or any school of tea.

A group of Takayama chasen acquired by the Mingei International Museum
The exhibit of tea whisks that includes many from the ancestors of Tanimura Tango at his showroom in Nara
(Photo Courtesy of Tanimura Tango)

The Tanimura family has been making chasen in Takayama, Nara prefecture, for nearly 500 years over 20 generations. During this pandemic, my awe and gratitude for the Tanimura family’s dedication to their craft was renewed because, the adversities that they must have overcome in their history of half a millennium was brought into perspective.

Chasen master Tanimura Tango making a tea whisk
(Photo courtesy of Tanimura Tango)

A chasen is made of a single piece of bamboo, and it is a highly renewable, natural material that is kind to the environment. It is flexible to be able to mix the powdered tea efficiently, but without damaging the bowl. So it is difficult to find a utensil that is as perfect as a chasen.

I hope that this consummate utensil will become a more familiar object to the people here, through the collection of the Mingei International Museum, soon to be reborn in the heart of San Diego’s beautiful Balboa Park. The Museum is currently closed to go through a major transformation and will reopen in 2021, continuing to shine a light on Mingei: the art of the people from all eras and cultures of the world since 1974.

The construction of the multi-purpose theater has begun at the Mingei International Museum.
Artist rendering of the new Mingei multipurpose theater space for lectures, concerts, films, dinners, and other events.
(Courtesy of Mingei International Museum, artist rendering by LUCE et studio)

Minazuki: Wishing Upon a Dessert

June 28, 2020Glass Food and Craft Sasaki Shoko

Glass plates by Sasaki Shoko in our shop ->

Leave it to the Japanese to come up with the most appropriate names for the months of the year. June is Minazuki, which literally means “the month of water.” This is the time of year when the rice paddy fields are filled with water, and also of relentless downpours because this is prime rainy season in Japan.

With tea classes cancelled until at least autumn, my desperation for Japanese sweets has reached new heights and so I embarked on making “Minazuki,” a delicious rice cake sweet named after the month.

Minazuki dessert on a glass plate by Sasaki Shoko. The triangle shape refers to the traditional thatched ice house where natural ice was stored. Summer sweets evoke a sense of coolness.

I first tasted Minazuki when visiting the Chado Research Center in Kyoto in 2015, where the museum entry fee included a bowl of matcha tea and a seasonal sweet. I’m terrible at remembering the times when I traveled to various places, but because I was served Minazuki, I know it was in June. I later also learned that people in Kyoto eat this triangular mochi dessert topped with red beans cooked in sugar often during the month of June.

A mochi topped with azuki red beans sounds relatively simple to make, but there is that stupid perfectionist in me that whispered, “but if you’re making Minazuki, the azuki can’t come from a can, it’s got to be those big Dainagon azuki.” In addition, the whisper continued: “Add some kudzu in the mochi to make it certainly Kyoto style (from my provincial Tokyoite perspective, kudzu is a very Kyoto ingredient).

With all these wild ambitions, I cooked over two days to make the sweet.  Alas, the red beans didn’t turn out quite as I had hoped because their skins broke. Ideally, they are supposed to be intact and beautifully plump. I discovered that Azuki cooking is an art, like making the perfect Canelés de Bordeaux. Cutting this delicious sticky thing was a challenge by itself, but I persevered!

Minazuki on a petal edged dessert plate by Sasaki Shoko.

Minazuki is eaten especially in conjunction with the day of the summer passage cleansing ritual known as “Nagoshi no harae” on June 30th. The ritual is carried out with the hope of being disease-free and to ward off disaster and misfortune. And since such a wish can be made by making and eating a humble sweet, I virtually send you all Minazuki, to wish you good health for the rest of this difficult year.

New Wood-Fired Porcelain by Shumpei Yamaki for Your Summer Evenings

June 17, 2020Ceramics Food and Craft Shumpei Yamaki

New work by Shumpei Yamaki in our shop->

I will never forget the first time I went berry picking with my host family in British Columbia in the summer as a high school exchange student. Back then in the late 1980s, I was only familiar with strawberries, which to me was a winter fruit as they are grown in greenhouses in Japan. But that Canadian summer, there were so many different kinds of berries to pick and eat. There was plenty of time for these berry escapades as daylight stretched way past 9 o’clock in the evening. I remember that I was very happy then, and ever since, berries lift my spirits up.

Homemade blueberry ice cream in wood-fired porcelain sake cups by Shumpei Yamaki. Wood-fired porcelain has subtle and beautiful colors of gray, light green and peach.

As the weather warms and my favorite summer fruits and vegetables start appearing on the dining table, my eyes seek refuge from the heat in the cool of porcelain ceramics, woven bamboo, and hues of blue, green, and purple.

In hot weather, my eyes seek refuge in cool colored tableware

Tea master Sen no Rikyu’s Seven Precepts, which is basically a code on organizing lovely and memorable gatherings, includes this piece of advice: “In the summer, provide a sense of coolness.” For example, in summer tea preparations, a water jar may be covered in freshly washed leaf with dews remaining on top, or a tea bowl may be brought in filled with water to convey a feeling of coolness. Even in our currently stress-filled pandemic world, I have found that taking the time to select utensils and set a seasonal table for my husband and myself provided a sense of calm and place.

Featuring water creates a sense of coolness on the table.
Shumpei Yamaki’s kiln after firing in Spring 2020. As with last time, Shumpei omitted the use of pyrometric cones and thermometer to create an environment for flow state
(Photo Courtesy of Shumpei Yamaki)

And because I love the combination of Shumpei Yamaki’s clean forms in white clay, gray, green, blue, and peach colors created by the fire and ash, I specifically asked him for some porcelain work this summer, in addition to his usual stoneware work. I’m delighted to share these glacial works by Shumpei with you, and hope that you’ll take the time to look at photos of them taken at different angles so that you can discover the subtle and amazing complexities that the wood-firing process can give to a porcelain’s surface.

New Work by Mike Martino: The Sun and the Moon Shine Eternally Inside a Jar

April 29, 2020Ceramics Karatsu Mike Martino

Ceramics by Mike Martino in our shop ->

As April comes to an end in San Diego, the parks and beaches have begun to gradually reopen. This marks the beginning of what will be a very long and uncertain journey to ending our physical distancing that began what seems a lifetime ago in mid-March. But the start of Phase One is an opportune reason to celebrate, and I’m delighted to be able to do this with new ceramic work by Mike Martino from Karatsu, Japan.

In this latest batch, I requested mostly pieces with brushwork that include lovely shrimps, which over the years have become Mike’s signature symbol. I find his lovely rhythmical brush strokes very comforting and meditative to follow with my eyes and I hope you do too.

Large Shino Bowl by Mike Martino with his signature shrimp drawings.

I would like in particular to introduce one of Mike’s pieces that seem to capture our current state of being quite nicely. It is a ekaratsu (painted karatsu) bowl that has the calligraphy letters “kochu nichi getsu nagashi (壺中日月長)” written on it. The literal translation of this Zen word is “the sun and the moon shine eternally inside a jar.”

This phrase was derived from an old Chinese anecdote of an elderly medicine vendor who always disappeared into a jar hanging in the front of his shop after the day’s work. Curious about where the old man was going every night, a local official befriended him and was able to get invited into the pot with him. Inside, the official found a vast palace with a large garden where the old man entertained the official with food and drink. After what seemed to be a whole day, the official returned to the real world to find out that decades had passed. The old medicine vender was an immortal ascetic.

Karatsu bowl with the calligraphy words “kochu nichigetsu nagashi” by Mike Martino

In Buddhist-speak, this may be interpreted as “the realm of enlightenment transcends time.” But I simply interpret this as “time is what you make of it” and unfortunately I fell out of making anything of it for a while during the seemingly unending lockdown. This was a sharp reminder that I was spending way too much time endlessly reading the dark news concerning the pandemic on my phone screen and feeling anxious. But I’m now finally crawling back into the jar.

Lastly, I’d like to add that a lot of time was squandered while I stared at Mike’s bowl trying to figure out which part of the calligraphy referred to the jar (壺), inside (中), sun (日), moon(月), and long (長), only to find that Mike wrote the whole Zen phrase in romanized Japanese. So now you can pronounce a sophisticated Zen saying in Japanese, and isn’t this a highly productive way of using your time?

Mike Martino is currently having an online sale of his work on his website in Japan 4/29-5/6/2020
(click here to visit his website).

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