Cherry Blossoms on a Tea Bowl by Dohachi Takahashi

Width: 11.3cm Height: 7.79cm

Colorful cherry blossom tea bowl - Takahashi Michihachi IX

This work, with its pale ecru ground dotted with white dots reminiscent of a snowstorm of cherry blossoms and its trunks and young branches painted with simple brushstrokes, exudes a free-flowing atmosphere as if it were a snapshot of a spring field. Below, we will introduce its appeal and design background in detail from five perspectives.

1. Beauty of form - A neat and reassuring form

While the bowl has a neat cylindrical shape created by wheel casting, the soft silhouette that widens slightly towards the rim allows the bowl to catch the fluffy foam of the matcha tea. The bowl is left with a moderate thickness around the body, making it stable to hold and allowing a tea towel to rest comfortably on it. The base is cut slightly higher, and the white of the base material stands out, tightening the bowl without compromising the overall lightness.

2. Glaze Tone - Cherry blossoms storming against the crazing

After applying ash glaze to the clay, fine crazing occurs through kiln changes, and the ware has subtle shadows depending on the light. Furthermore, white mud is sprayed on from above, reminiscent of cherry blossom petals, and when combined with the off-white ground, it looks like a soft snowy landscape. Tea seeps in along the crazing, and the appearance deepens with years of use, which is another thing to enjoy.

3. Design: Depicting the moment when flowers first bloom

The wood grain in the center of the body is characterized by dynamic brushstrokes painted in one go with iron paint. The composition of young branches reaching into the sky is reminiscent of cherry blossoms in early spring as they begin to sprout, and combined with the small floral pattern in white clay, it captures the moment when they first bloom. The scattered colors on the outside are accented with tiny flowers in scarlet, indigo, and green, while the same paint is sprayed on the inside, allowing you to enjoy the scene of cherry blossoms falling in the wind even while making tea.

4. Techniques: A combination of white clay and overglaze color painting

Iron paint : The trunks and branches are painted one by one with a pigment containing iron, and the color develops into a calm dark brown after firing. The highlight is the expression of the "wood grain" that makes use of the brush strokes.

Overglaze painting : After the main firing, red, blue and green petals are dotted with low-temperature glaze and then fired again to fix the color. Although it is difficult to control the temperature difference during the second firing, the advanced kiln master's technique is evident in the clarity of the colors and the adhesion.

5. Historical and Cultural Background - Tea Ceremony and Cherry Blossoms

Since the Heian period, cherry blossoms have been featured at cherry blossom viewing parties and in waka poetry, and have been popular at tea ceremonies as the flower's auspiciousness. Tea utensils with a cherry blossom theme are particularly prized at tea ceremonies in early April, known as "flower tea ceremonies." Takahashi Dohachi is a master of Kyoto ware color painting, known for fusing classical designs with modern sensibilities, and in this work he uses minimalist brushstrokes and playful spray painting to create a light cherry blossom scene that fits in with modern spaces.

The Takahashi Dohachi family has been known as a prestigious Kyoto ware color painting family since the late Edo period. The ninth generation master graduated from the Department of Clothing Design at Kyoto Bunkyo Junior College, majored in design, and then went on to the Department of Molding and Research at Kyoto Prefectural Ceramic Technical College, and further solidified his technical foundation at the Kyoto Industrial Research Institute.

In 1996, he began to study pottery under his father, Dohachi Yashiro, and began making pottery in earnest.

In 2012, he took on the name of the ninth Takahashi Dohachi.

His style, which combines the sense of form cultivated in clothing design with the traditional techniques of Kyoto ware, has breathed new life into the Dohachi family of pottery and displays a sophistication that stands out in modern tea ceremonies and gallery spaces.

This tea bowl, which seems to contain the breath of spring, is a masterpiece that exquisitely harmonizes the elegance of the pale ecru base and the scattered white flowers with the dynamism of the iron paint. When you hold it in your hand, the warmth of the base material and the unevenness of the sprayed paint feel comfortable on your fingertips, and every time you make matcha, you can imagine a scene of cherry blossom snowstorms dancing inside and outside the bowl. It is not only perfect for tea ceremonies in the flower season, but it would also be fun to use it at autumn and winter events to create the atmosphere of ``waiting for the flowers.'' We hope you will cherish it for many years to come, and enjoy the moment when the cherry blossoms sprout with every cup of tea.