Nerikomi Seigo Star Birth Lid holder Suwa Sozan

Width: 6.1cm Height: 6.4cm

The "Nerikomi Celadon Star Birth Lid Rest" is an extremely poetic and skillful piece that depicts the mystical moment when a star is born in the universe through layers of clay and the light of the glaze. This piece, among the "Nerikomi Celadon" series by Suwa Sozan IV, can be said to be a symbolic piece that connects the universe and the spiritual world of humans .

When a star is born, hydrogen gas and dust converge in interstellar space, eventually becoming a star that emits its own light. This birth can be observed through a telescope as the glow of a nebula bathed in a pale crimson or pink light . Sozan expressed the colors of this moment with red porcelain, captured the calm, silent depths of the universe with celadon and indigo porcelain, and added white porcelain, which symbolizes human activities . By kneading the four colors of porcelain clay together, he crystallized the poetry of the celestial body into a single bowl .

The universe of "nerikomi" made from four-colored porcelain clay

This piece was created using the "nerikomi" technique, in which four colors of porcelain clay - white porcelain, celadon porcelain, blue porcelain, and red porcelain - are layered and shaped on a potter's wheel to form them into a single piece . This technique requires precise adjustment of the physical properties and shrinkage rates of each type of clay, and requires extremely high technical skill and a deep understanding of the materials .

During the shaping process, the rotation of the potter's wheel and the application of force by hand cause the layers of porcelain clay to twist into a spiral, creating a sculptural drift where chance and control collide . It is truly a moment when the gravity of the universe and the vortex of a nebula converse with each other, and it is a moment when beauty beyond artifice emerges .

The glaze is transparent, allowing the layers of porcelain clay to appear as if they are blending in. Depending on the angle of the light, the crimson porcelain stands out more strongly, while the blue porcelain has a more subdued glow. One of the charms of this piece is that the colors change every day, like stargazing .

The lid rest, the "star of the tea room"

A lid rest is a tool used in the tea ceremony to support the ladle or the lid of a tea kettle, but it is more than just an auxiliary tool; it also creates a sense of space during the tea ceremony .

Cylindrical lid rests like this one have an extremely neat and modern appearance . Its straight, vertical form from the inside to the bottom brings a sense of tension to the movements of the tea ceremony, while at the same time the undulations of the porcelain clay give it a somewhat organic, fluid feel .

When displayed on a shelf, it gives the impression of a floating planet , and when placed in a teapot, a microcosm quietly appears in the tea room . When the ladle is held up during the tea ceremony, the stillness of this work placed there becomes a point of contact where the time of the universe and the time of the tea room intertwine .

Colors and Symbolism: Pink Nebulae, Blue Sky

The color composition in this work is not simply an aesthetic pursuit: it is a symbolic structure that expresses the red of the nebula, the blue of the galaxy, the white of the night sky, and the shadows of the universe .

The pale pink of the crimson porcelain is a nod to the visible light of hydrogen luminescence emitted at the moment a star is born, while the surrounding bands of celadon and indigo represent the silence and depths of outer space.The white porcelain seems to symbolize the human gaze , or the presence of an observer, standing amidst such a landscape.

This interplay and blending of colors is a cutting-edge aesthetic experiment in contemporary celadon, and in the context of tea ceremony utensils it is also deeply connected to Japanese sensibilities such as seasonality and symbolism .

The cosmic view of the fourth generation Suwa Sozan

The fourth generation Suwa Sozan (born in Kyoto in 1970) has inherited the spirit of the revival of celadon porcelain from the first three generations, while also creating numerous works that combine modern design philosophy with poetic ideas on a cosmic scale .

In particular, works such as this one from the Nerikomi series are not simply reproductions of tradition, but rather show a philosophical approach that reconstructs the relationship between humans and the universe, and tools and nature .
What these works have in common is a view of art and a spirituality based on the teachings of her mother, the 12th Nakamura Sotetsu, that "a story should reside in a vessel, a presence that quietly speaks to us."

Tea Ceremony and Space

The "Nerikomi Celadon Star-Birth Lid Rest" is a rare piece that brings a poetic vision of the creation of the universe into the intimate and beautiful space of the tea ceremony.
Although it is a lid rest, it is more than just a tool; it is a door that offers a glimpse into the vastness of the universe within the limited space of the tea room.

The act of projecting the grand scale of the birth of a star onto a small piece of porcelain that fits in the palm of your hand reminds us once again of the essential power of ceramics, that is, its ability to quietly scoop up the essence of the world .