Skip to main content
Entoten
FacebookInstagramPinterestYouTube

Menu

Skip to content
  • Blog
  • Shop
  • Artists
  • Places
  • Press
Sign In Search

Recent Posts

  • POP UP CRAFT SHOW at the Den on Laurel Street Dec. 3rd & 4th November 23, 2022
  • Frost Falls Approximately October 23th – November 6th October 23, 2022
  • Harmony with Food: Ceramics by Kojima Yosuke in Iga October 18, 2022
  • Cold Dew
    Approximately October 8th – 22nd
    October 8, 2022
  • Autumn Equinox
    Approximately September 23rd – October 7th
    September 21, 2022
January 2023
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031  
« Nov    

Top Posts & Pages

  • The Flavor of the Earth: The Rustic Ceramics of Shigaraki
    The Flavor of the Earth: The Rustic Ceramics of Shigaraki
  • Guide to Choosing Your Tea Whisk for Matcha
    Guide to Choosing Your Tea Whisk for Matcha
  • Essays for the 72 Microseasons with Calligraphy by Chieko
    Essays for the 72 Microseasons with Calligraphy by Chieko
  • Takami Yasuhiro: Master Bamboo Basket Weaver
    Takami Yasuhiro: Master Bamboo Basket Weaver
  • Beyond the Object: Visiting Kawai Kanjiro’s House in Kyoto
    Beyond the Object: Visiting Kawai Kanjiro’s House in Kyoto

Categories

  • 72 Seasons Essays
  • Events, Workshops and Webinars
  • People
    • Naru (Inoue Naruhito)
    • Kojima Yosuke
    • Ayumi Horie
    • Bill Geisinger
    • Chieko (Calligraphy)
    • Floresta Fabrica
    • Hanako Nakazato
    • Harada Fumiko
    • Hashizume Reiko
    • Hashizume Yasuo
    • Horihata Ran
    • Hoshino Gen
    • Ikushima Harumi
    • Inoue Shigeru
    • Ishida Tami
    • Jarrod Dahl
    • Kazu Oba
    • Kenneth Pincus
    • Kikuchi Yuka
    • Kitamura Tokusai
    • Kobayashi Katsuhisa
    • Kubota Kenji
    • Kuriya Masakatsu
    • Maeda Mitsuru
    • Marshall Scheetz
    • Mike Martino
    • Mitch Iburg
    • Muranaka Yasuhiko
    • Nakaya Yoshitaka
    • Nitta Yoshiko
    • Ontayaki
    • Sakai Mika
    • Samuel Johnson
    • Sarah Nishiura
    • Saratetsu
    • Sasaki Shoko
    • Shumpei Yamaki
    • Style Of Japan
    • Takahashi Nami
    • Takami Yasuhiro
    • Tanimura Tango
    • Watanabe Ai
    • Yamada Yutaro
    • Yamauchi Takeshi
    • Yokotsuka Yutaka
  • Baskets
  • Ceramics
  • Design
  • Glass
  • Kintsugi
  • Metal
  • Textiles
  • Urushi
  • Wood
  • Mingei
  • Research
  • Food and Craft
  • Topics
  • Tea (Chado)
  • Travels
    • Arita
    • Bizen
    • Hagi
    • Karatsu
    • Kuroe
    • Kyoto
    • Matsumoto
    • Mino / Tajimi
    • Onta
    • Shigaraki
    • Shizuoka
    • Sonoma County
    • Tokoname
    • Vietnam

Tag: glass plate

Introducing Sasaki Shoko: Making Original and Elegant Kiln Formed Glass

By:
Ai Kanazawa
July 31, 2012Glass Sasaki Shoko

Sasaki Shoko is one of the exciting new talents in Japan’s glass making community. This young and energetic glass artist has a creative vision that is reflected brilliantly in the tasteful combination of shapes and colors that distinguish her kiln formed glass works.

Sasaki Shoko at her studio in Tokyo Japan (photo courtesy of Sasaki Shoko)

Studio KotoKoto came across Shoko’s work in a show at a prominent department store in Tokyo in October 2011.  The show featured handcrafted items for contemporary tea ceremonies and was organized by an artist collective called Enishi.

Kiln formed glass plate by Sasaki Shoko
Kiln formed glass plates by Sasaki Shoko

Shoko explains her approach: “I always try to bring out the best in the ability of glass to create interesting expressions by layering colors”. She strives to bring out the beautiful yet subtle Japanese colors such as gunjyo (ultramarine), sumire (violet), and kurenai (crimson) into her fused glass. Shoko’s exquisite works instantly attracted our eyes.

Glass artist Sasaki Shoko’s base drawing and design of her plates
(Photo courtesy of Sasaki Shoko)
Scoring glass with a glass cutter (photo courtesy of Sasaki Shoko)
A running plier is used for breaking the glass along the score line
(photo courtesy of Sasaki Shoko)

An interesting twist is that the colored glass that Shoko works with is produced in the U.S. by Bullseye Glass Co., which has been providing fusing compatibility tested glass to artists around the world since 1974. By layering, sandblasting, and firing and re-firing this glass to precise temperatures in the kiln, Shoko masterfully allows the glass to express the delicate and sometimes slightly muted colors that are uniquely Japanese.

Placing the glass on a slumping mold in the kiln
(Photo courtesy of Sasaki Shoko)

Shoko grew up in Niigata, a prefecture in the island of Honshu on the coast of the Sea of Japan. After moving to Tokyo to attend Musashino Art University, she was instinctively drawn to glass as a medium because of their transparent and colorful nature. During her formal training at the university for a Masters of Fine Arts, she was especially drawn to kiln-formed glass because it allowed her to accomplish numerous expressions by understanding and manipulating the kiln temperatures.

“My work may not be flamboyant, but I design them to have a distinct presence when people use them”, Shoko points out. The work she creates are stunning and elegant indeed!

A selection of kiln-formed glass plates made by Sasaki Shoko is available from our shop.

  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy & Security
  • Contact Us
  • ✉️ Newsletter Archive
  • About
  • えんとてんJapan

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Our Mailing Address is

Entoten LLC
c/o The Den on Laurel St.
205 Laurel St. Suite 104
San Diego CA 92101

E-mail: hello@entoten.com

Copyright © 2022 ENTOTEN LLC

Studio Kotokoto is now closed. Thank you for your support over the years!
You have been redirected to Entoten, an online blog and shop that was created by one of Studio Kotokoto’s founders.